Israel’s security cabinet approved the recognition of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank as the government continues its settlement expansion drive.
Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a settler who proposed the measure along with Defense Minister Israel Katz, said the decision was aimed at blocking the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are considered illegal under international law.
Saudi Arabia condemned the move. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said Israel’s “relentless” settlement expansion is fueling tensions, restricting Palestinian access to land and threatening the viability of a sovereign Palestinian state.
Violence in the occupied West Bank has increased since the war in Gaza began in October 2023, further raising fears that settlement expansion could entrench Israel’s occupation and undermine a two-state solution.
The two-state solution refers to the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital, broadly similar to what existed before the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
Since taking office in 2022, the current Israeli government has significantly increased approval of new settlements and has begun the process of legalizing unauthorized outposts, recognizing them as “neighborhoods” of existing settlements.
According to Smotrich, the most recent decision brings the total number of agreements approved in the last three years to 69.
The approvals come just days after the United Nations said settlement expansion had reached its highest level since 2017.
The latest approvals include the reestablishment of two settlements, Ganim and Kadim, which were dismantled almost 20 years ago.
In May, Israel approved 22 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, the largest expansion in decades.
The Israeli government also approved plans in August to build more than 3,000 homes in the so-called E1 project between Jerusalem and the Maale Adumim settlement, which had been frozen for decades amid fierce international opposition.
Smotrich said at the time that the plan would “bury the idea of a Palestinian state.”
Around 700,000 settlers live in approximately 160 settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, according to the Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now. It is the land that Palestinians seek for a future independent state.
The settlement expansion has angered Arab nations, which have consistently said it undermines prospects for a two-state solution.
It has also raised concerns about the possible annexation of the occupied West Bank.
US President Donald Trump had warned Israel about such a move, telling TIME magazine that Israel would lose all US support if it happened.
In September, the United Kingdom – along with other countries including Australia and Canada – recognized a Palestinian state, a significant if symbolic change in government policy.
Israel opposed the move and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said a Palestinian state “will not happen.”
