The Israeli government has announced that it has allocated nearly sixty-million dollars to build new roads for Jewish settlers in the West Bank.

Construction of the roads, which are designed to allow settlers to reach their home areas without having to travel through Palestinian-controlled towns, will begin this weekend.

At the same time, the government allocated about a million dollars for new security measures in east Jerusalem.

Correspondents say that while the precise maps of areas to be handed over to the Palestinians under the latest agreement have not yet been released, the transfer is expected to leave several Jewish settlements almost surrounded by Palestinian-controlled areas.