Israel Unveils Plan For 22 New West Bank Settlements
The Israeli government has approved the creation of 22 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The decision, announced on Thursday by Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, includes the reestablishment of Homesh and Sa-Nur, two northern West Bank settlements.
Both settlements were dismantled during Israel’s 2005 disengagement from Gaza under then-prime minister Ariel Sharon.
“We have made a historic decision for the development of settlements: 22 new communities in Judea and Samaria. Next step: sovereignty!” Smotrich declared on X.
A map released by the party shows the settlements strategically scattered across the territory, including four planned communities along the Jordan Valley, an area Israel views as crucial to its eastern security frontier.
“This move changes the face of the region and shapes the future of settlement for years to come,” Defence Minister Israel Katz said.
The move is expected to be met with International condemnation. The United Nations has repeatedly declared that Israeli settlements in the West Bank violate international law, saying it is a key obstacle to any future peace agreement with the Palestinians.
The announcement comes just weeks before an international peace summit at the United Nations, led by France and Saudi Arabia, which aims to revive the long-dormant two-state solution.
There is, however, optimism over a potential ceasefire deal in Gaza.
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, on Wednesday, said he had “very good feelings” about negotiations towards a truce. He added that a new proposal for halting the war was imminent.
But the West Bank decision leaves such diplomacy at risk of collapse.
Israel Unveils Plan For 22 New West Bank Settlements is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
