Israel’s Housing Ministry opened bidding to developers on 200 homes in the West Bank.

The ministry issued the tenders for two construction projects, including 114 homes in Efrat and 84 in Kiryat Arba, near Hebron.

Meanwhile, Peace Now released a report Jan. 16 saying that a record number of construction projects commenced or were approved in West Bank Jewish settlements in 2012.

The government approved plans for more than 6,600 West Bank apartments and homes, and ground was broken on another 1,400 West Bank homes, the report said; 3,500 of the approvals were residential units intended for the E1 corridor between Maale Adumim and Jerusalem. Four new settlement outposts were established in 2012.

In 2011, by comparison, 1,607 housing units were approved for construction, according to the report. — jta