Israeli authorities approved on Wednesday evening the construction of 3144 new settlement units in the occupied West Bank.
The announcement came after the decision to postpone the approval in light of the pressures exerted by the US administration on the Israeli occupation government as Washington announced its rejection of settlement expansion in the West Bank.
The US Department of State yesterday expressed its “grave concern” over Israel’s plans to move forward with the construction of new settlements and its strong rejection of such an approach which harms the prospect of the two-state solution.
“We are deeply concerned about the Israeli government’s plan to advance thousands of settlement units many of them deep in the West Bank. We strongly oppose the expansion of settlements which is completely inconsistent with efforts to lower tensions and to ensure calm” US Department of State spokesperson Ned Price said.
Last Sunday Israeli occupation authorities issued tenders for the construction of around 1355 new settler homes in illegal West Bank settlements.
The Israeli announcement was the first of its kind since US President Joe Biden who has voiced his opposition to settlement expansion took office in January.
