The real estate blurbs are typically effusive, boasting everything from a choice of bathroom tiles to TV sockets in every room, to say nothing of the amazing views. Welcome to Maale Adumim, one of Israel's fastest growing settlements in the occupied West Bank.

While Jewish settlers were being hauled out of their homes in the Gaza Strip a week ago, newcomers to Maale Adumim were just moving in. At one new development, dominated by the contractor's billboard, window frames were still being fitted and lawns awaited their first sowing of grass.