Germany urged Israel on Wednesday to scrap legislation that would legalize Israeli settlement homes built on private Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank saying this would break international law.
A German Foreign Ministry spokesman told a regular government news conference: “We’re extremely concerned about this development and have noted with consternation statements made by Israeli government officials during this debate”.
“Such a bill violates international law” he said adding that Israel would undermine its commitment to finding a “two-state solution” if the bill is passed.
Asked whether Germany and the European Union should punish Israel with economic or diplomatic sanctions the spokesman said: “We don’t think that sanctions would be the right path in this case to make headway in the Middle East peace process.”
Israel’s parliament gave initial approval on Monday to a revised bill to legalize illegal settlement homes. It must pass three more votes at unspecified future dates before becoming law.
