Thousands of Israelis protest high housing prices

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

July 23, 2011 4:07 PM
Thousands of Israelis protest high housing prices

(AP) JERUSALEM — Thousands of people marched in downtown Tel Aviv on Saturday to protest rising housing prices, the first major demonstration in a movement calling attention to the soaring cost of living.

Army Radio estimated more than 15,000 people took to the streets Saturday. Over the past two weeks, Israelis also have set up tent camps in a handful of cities throughout the country.

"We are fighting for our homes!" protesters chanted Saturday in Tel Aviv. Protesters say they cannot afford to buy or rent apartments.

The grassroots movement is drawing attention to economic frustration among Israelis from many layers of society. The country has one of the highest poverty rates and income gaps in the developed world, and prices for homes, food and fuel have risen in recent months.



Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/07/23/ap/middleeast/main20082524.shtml

[DFW]

1. A Jewish friend of mine is looking to buy a condo in Jerusalem

He told me, it's cheaper in midtown Manhattan (he is European).

He said Israel has tons of choice housing owned by rich Americans, Russians and others
who show up a few weeks out of the year, and leave their dwellings empty for 45 weeks.
Ordinary Israelis can't compete. My friend is 65 and is looking to move his family there,
and retire there in a few years himself, but the prices are staggering.

[Mosby]

8. This is why many Israelis live in the OTs.

Lower priced housing.

[DFW]

10. Bad all around.

They should have residence requirements for foreigners who buy expensive residences in densely
populated areas, like the Swiss do. Settling more and more people in the OTs is a formula for
continued disaster.

[jtuck004]

2. Oh, good luck. Corps own your poor souls as well.

Will be interesting to see if that has any real impact. Will wait to see.

[Cool Logic]

3. If only houses were exportable goods...

[UndertheOcean]

4. The Arab spring reached Israel now ? Good !

[Purveyor]

5. Well I think it is well past time the US taxpayer steps up to the plate and subsidizes

the housing costs for our 'special ally' israel...

NOT!!!

[kickysnana]

6. +1

[DesertFlower]

7. i like watching house hunters, int. on HGTV.

2 women from chicago were looking for a condo in tel aviv. the lowest price was $500,000 and needed work. another woman wanted a house in jerusalem. the houses were in the 4 million range. oy vey.

[bikebloke]

9. Time to move back to the kibbutzim.

My old kibbutz went over to the dark side and privatized. If it gets too bad, I wonder if they'll return to the communal life.

[FourScore]

11. Israel Erupting in Protests, Tens of Thousands Chanting "Revolution"

Source: DailyKos

Approximately 30,000 protesters marched in Tel Aviv last night, with social justice activists blocking central streets and chants of "Mubarak. Assad. Netanyahu" filling the air.

Tel Aviv police arrested 42 activists, which is an extremely rare number, "if not unprecedented," according to +972 Magazine, which has been closely following the circumstances surrounding the sudden rise of Israel's progressive left.

The protests are part of a larger movement that began as opposition to rising housing prices, and indeed is still centered around that issue, but has spread to other social justice and progressive causes.

These protests are being described as "the greatest challenge PM Netanyahu faces on the home front," and show that the progressive left in Israel has awoken...

Read more: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/07/24/998065/-Israel-Erupting-in-Protests,-Tens-of-Thousands-Chanting-Revolution?via=siderec