A proposed luxury hotel overlooking Jerusalem’s Old City was abruptly pulled from the planning agenda after lawmakers heard that Israeli planning bodies have no real mechanism to vet the security background of developers and ultimate beneficiaries.
At the center is Palestinian businessman Bashar al-Masri, who is facing a major U.S. civil lawsuit brought by nearly 200 plaintiffs tied to the October 7 massacre, alleging he knowingly enabled Hamas terror infrastructure beneath and around high-profile properties he developed in Gaza. Families of victims and fallen soldiers pressed Israeli officials to stop what they called an unacceptable “whitewashing” of a figure accused of helping Hamas operate under the cover of commercial projects.
According to testimony described in the coverage, the plan was initially submitted under the Greek Orthodox Church, and only at a late stage did officials learn the land had been sold onward to an Italian company, triggering questions about who actually stood behind the project and how such deals can obscure identities until the final stretch. The discussion was halted after new information emerged and public pressure escalated, with municipal officials confirming the item was removed from the committee agenda.
The U.S. case alleges Hamas tunnel entrances were accessible from within certain properties, and that above-ground infrastructure such as power systems helped sustain subterranean networks used for terror operations. Masri has publicly rejected the claims as baseless in prior reporting. He also stepped down from a Harvard Kennedy School advisory role after the allegations surfaced.
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