Tel Aviv, March 5 (RHC)-- Israeli government figures show that Tel Aviv initiated more than twice as many West Bank settlement homes last year than it did the previous year.

Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics said construction began on more than 2,500 settlement housing units in 2013, compared to just more than 1,100 the year before.

Last year’s number is the highest in a decade. In the West Bank’s Jordan Valley, Palestinian residents and local officials say Israel has demolished hundreds of homes.

In other news from Tel Aviv, an Israeli contractor that provides surveillance systems along Israel’s separation barrier in the West Bank has won a $145 million contract to provide similar technology along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Bloomberg reports the contract with Elbit Systems could reach $1 billion if an immigration bill passes.