Israel Says 'New' West Bank Settlement Is 25 Years Old

Jerusalem (CNSNews.com) - Israel denied on Thursday that it is setting up a new settlement to house families evicted from their homes when its military forces unilaterally withdrew from the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2005 and said that the settlement has been there for 25 years.

Earlier this week, Israel Defense Minister Amir Peretz authorized the building of 30 new homes in Maskiot, a settlement in the Jordan Valley area of the West Bank, to house families mostly from the former settlement of Shirat HaYam.

Most of the more than 8,000 Israelis who were removed from their communities in the Gaza Strip and West Bank are now staying in temporary homes inside Israel, where they plan to build permanent communities.