Israel has announced plans to establish 22 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from the international community. The decision, approved by Israel’s security cabinet, was announced by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz, who emphasized that the initiative would “change the face of the region and shape the future of settlement for years to come”. Smotrich defended the move, stating that Israel was not taking foreign land but rather reclaiming the “heritage of our ancestors”.
The new settlements are part of a broader effort to strengthen Israel’s presence in the West Bank, with four communities planned along the eastern border with Jordan to enhance national security and strategic control. However, this development has been met with widespread condemnation, including from the Jordanian government, which views the move as a “flagrant violation of international law” that undermines prospects for peace and the viability of a two-state solution.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas and human rights organizations have also denounced the plan, with the latter warning that it will further entrench the occupation and dramatically reshape the West Bank. The announcement comes ahead of an international conference to be led by France and Saudi Arabia at the UN headquarters in New York next month, aimed at reviving the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
