Israeli ministers approve millions in aid for West Bank settlement

The Israeli cabinet on Sunday approved a $1.5 million aid package for the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba to refurbish public areas and advance educational programming, The Times of Israel reported.

The funding boost will be drawn from the Housing Ministry budget, 10 days after 13-year-old Hallel Ariel was stabbed to death in her bed in Kiryat Arba, and as the government has sought to respond to the incident by pushing settlement projects.

Some $1.1 million will be used in 2016-2017 to renovate local buildings, public areas, and stairwells.

The remaining money will be funneled toward educational programming, the founding of a youth center, and other local community initiatives over the course of three years.

The government approval appeared to be the first installment of a reported $12.8 million plan for Jewish settlements in the West Bank city of Hebron and nearby Kiryat Arba.

Following Ariel’s murder, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he would push through approval for 46 new homes in Kiryat Arba.

Source: MENA