🔗 Share this article

Israel's top security body has given its endorsement to the formalization of 19 fresh communities in the occupied Palestinian territories, signaling a sustained drive for community development.

Hardline Treasury Chief Bezalel Smotrich, who lives in a settlement and advocated for the measure together with Defence Minister Israel Katz, declared that the decision was aimed at thwarting the creation of a Palestinian state.

Under international law, Israeli settlements in the disputed territories are viewed as unlawful.

The decision has elicited criticism from Saudi Arabia. The United Nations chief Antonio Guterres has commented that Israel's "persistent" settlement expansion exacerbates frictions, curtails Palestinian access to territory, and jeopardizes the feasibility of a sovereign Palestinian state.

Increased Unrest and Political Repercussions

Violence in the region has surged since the conflict in Gaza began in the autumn of 2023, further heightening concerns that the growth of communities could entrench Israel's occupation and undermine the prospects for a two-state solution.

The concept of two states envisions the formation of a State of Palestine in the Palestinian territories, with East Jerusalem as its seat of government, largely along the boundaries that were in place before the 1967 Middle East war.

Upon assuming leadership in late 2022, the current Israeli government has ramped up the green-lighting of fresh communities and started the legalisation process for previously illegal outposts, recognising them as "suburbs" of existing settlements.

Sustained Growth

The most recent decision brings the overall count of communities approved over the last three years to 69, according to the Finance Minister.

These authorizations are announced a short time after the UN said that settlement expansion had reached its peak since 2017.

The latest batch of authorizations includes the revival of a pair of communities — Ganim and Kadim — which were dismantled about two decades ago.

In a previous move, Israel authorized 22 additional settlements in the occupied West Bank - labeled as the most significant wave of approvals in decades.

Furthermore, the government sanctioned blueprints in August to build over three thousand housing units in the controversial E1 area between the capital and the Maale Adumim settlement, a plan that had been stalled for many years amid fierce international opposition.

Regarding that plan, the Finance Minister remarked it would "put to rest the concept of a Palestinian state."

Demographic Facts and Global Response

An estimated 700,000 Israeli settlers live in approximately one hundred and sixty communities in the occupied territories, according to the Israel-based monitoring organization Peace Now. This is territory that Palestinians seek for a future independent state.

This ongoing construction has drawn ire from Arab states who have repeatedly contended it erodes chances for a peaceful two-state outcome.

It has also raised anxieties about the eventual incorporation of the occupied West Bank.

Ex- American President Donald Trump had once warned Israel about this step, stating to TIME magazine that Israel would lose all its support from the US if it occurred.

Recently, the United Kingdom - joined by other nations such as Australia and Canada - recognised a State of Palestine, a significant although largely symbolic change in government policy.

Israel opposed this recognition, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that a Palestinian state "will not happen."