Israel Approves New West Bank Settlements, Citing Opposition to Palestinian State

The Israeli governmentS security cabinet announced Sunday its continued opposition to “the establishment of a terrorist Palestinian state” and approved the installation of 19 new settlements in the West Bank. This measure, authorities say, is intended to “block the establishment of a terrorist Palestinian state” amid escalating colonization since October 7.

This approval brings the total number of settlements greenlit in the last three years to 69,according to a statement from the office of far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich,a settler and advocate for the annexation of the territory occupied by Israel since 1967. The announcement follows a recent United Nations report detailing record growth in Israeli settlements as monitoring began in 2017.

“The proposal by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz to declare and formalize 19 new settlements in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) was approved by the cabinet,” smotrich’s office stated.