Jewish settlers protest eviction plan

Jewish settlers march to Jerusalem to protest a plan to remove five settler buildings erected on private Palestinian land.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday got legal approval to remove the apartment houses in the Beit El settlement in the occupied West Bank.

Netanyahu proposed that the dwellings be moved to a nearby military zone after a Supreme Court ruling that determined the buildings were constructed illegally and should be demolished.

The plan is opposed by ultranationalist politicians, settlers and their supporters - the Prime Minister's traditional powerbase.

The settlements on occupied land are considered illegal under international law, and one Knesset member said he backed Netanyahu's plan to help Israel's international image.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) KNESSET LAWYER MEIR SHEETRIR:

"We have a big problem in the international arena because of the settlements, which became to be an issue, which are really creating anti-Israeli actions across the world."

Under the proposal, Netanyahu wants to build 300 new housing units in the West Bank in a bid to appease those angered by the removal of the Beit El homes.

Simon Hanna, Reuters.