‘We are not protected’ says Hebron mayor as Israel expands West Bank control

(Lucy Williamson – BBC) A Palestinian official in the occupied West Bank has described Israel’s latest expansion of control there as “the end of the road” for negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. Asma al-Sharabati, acting mayor of Hebron, said new legal changes recently announced by Israeli cabinet ministers would leave Palestinian authorities shut out of decisions on urban planning and development, even in areas under Palestinian control. Hebron is a regular flashpoint in the West Bank – a divided city, where soldiers guard hundreds of Israeli settlers living alongside Palestinians in an Israeli military garrison. – ‘We are not protected’ says Hebron mayor, as Israel expands control of West Bank