Gaza (TDI): Israel’s security cabinet has approved the establishment of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, a move criticized by the United Nations as illegal under international law.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a prominent supporter of settlement expansion, said the decision is intended to prevent the creation of a Palestinian state.
The approvals come just days after the UN reported that settlement expansion in the West Bank had reached its highest level since at least 2017. According to Smotrich’s office, the new settlements bring the total number of Israeli settlements approved in the past three years to 69.
Smotrich, who is also a settler, described the expansion as a way of “blocking the establishment of a Palestinian terror state” and affirmed Israel’s right to “develop, build, and settle the land of our ancestral heritage.” Two of the new settlements, Ganim and Kadim in the northern West Bank, are being re-established after being dismantled decades ago, while five others existed previously but lacked formal legal recognition under Israeli law.
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UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the move, describing Israel’s settlement expansion as “relentless” and a threat to peace in the region. He stressed that such actions obstruct Palestinian access to land and undermine the prospects of a sovereign, contiguous Palestinian state.
The UN report highlighted a sharp increase in settlement activity, noting an average of 12,815 housing units added annually between 2017 and 2022, representing the highest level of expansion since records began. Guterres emphasized that these developments “entrench the unlawful occupation and violate international law, undermining the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.”
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Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. Excluding East Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in settlements alongside about three million Palestinians. Settlement expansion, including the legalisation of outposts, has fueled fears of eventual annexation.
US President Donald Trump had previously warned Israel against annexing the West Bank, noting that such a move could jeopardize American support.
