Chairman Herzl Yechezkel of the population administration for Jerusalem's Har Homa (Homat Shmuel) neighborhood stated Friday that there is a shortage of synagogues and other public buildings. Interviewed by 's Hebrew service, the attorney said, "There are 20,000 citizens in the neighborhood and a need for dozens of public buildings. Unfortunately, the authorities did not foresee the tremendous demand."

Yechezkel said there are only two synagogues, each with about a hundred people in a neighborhood that is 90 percent religious, leaving a need for about 30 synagogues. He said the neighborhood also lacks schools and kindergartens