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JERUSALEM (Ma’an) -- An Israeli court in occupied Jerusalem has issued an injunction to freeze construction on 740 dunams of land in two villages, al-Tour and al-Issawiyyeh, an attorney said Monday.

The decision follows a petition by the Jerusalem Center for Legal Assistance and Human Rights, and it demands a response from the municipality and environmental authority by February.

The attorney, Muin Odeh of the Jerusalem center, says the initiative is to establish a national park on 740 dunams of land in the two villages of al-Tour and al-Issawiyyeh.

Israel's Haaretz newspaper has reported that details of the plan say Mt. Scopus' eastern slopes are vital to the area's landscape and archaeology.

Residents, however, say it will prevent them from expanding.