Palestinian authorities slam ‘dangerous’ Israeli plan for 9,000 West Bank settler homes

Palestinian authorities have condemned a planned Israeli settlement project that would construct nearly 9,000 settler homes in the central occupied West Bank, calling it a “dangerous” threat to the region’s geography and demographics.

In a statement released on Monday, the al-Quds Governorate said the plan "threatens the geographical and demographic links between al-Quds and the city of Ramallah."

“The Israeli occupation authorities are seeking to implement a dangerous settlement plan on the lands of al-Quds International Airport and neighboring areas,” it added.

The governorate warned that its implementation “will lead to the establishment of a settlement enclave separating northern al-Quds from its Palestinian surroundings.”

The proposed illegal settlements would be built in densely populated Palestinian neighborhoods, including Kafr Aqab, Qalandia, Al-Ram, Beit Hanina, and Bir Nabala.

According to the governorate, the project “deepens the policy of separation and isolation imposed on the city and its surroundings, and undermines any political horizon based on the two-state solution.”

An Israeli committee is set to meet on Wednesday to discuss advancing the controversial plan.

Meanwhile, Israel’s far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich recently announced that 810 million shekels will be allocated to the establishment of about 20 new settlements over the next five years, describing the initiative as the largest single investment in settlement growth in decades.

Smotrich, who also oversees civil administration in the occupied West Bank, called it a strategic effort to “strengthen Jewish presence” across the territory.

The decision has drawn widespread international criticism. Palestinian leaders, Arab states, the United Nations, and the European Union have condemned the plan, with Palestinian officials describing it as “ethnic cleansing by other means.”

Presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said the project represents “a dangerous escalation that destroys any chance for peace and directly challenges international legitimacy.”

Hamas slams Israeli decision to legalize 19 settlements in occupied West Bank

The Palestinian group has strongly condemned an Israeli plan on legalizing at least 19 Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank,

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry called for immediate sanctions against Israel, while the Hamas resistance movement and Palestinian Islamic Jihad vowed to resist “continued aggression against the Palestinian people.”

The decision comes amid continuous Israeli violations of the ceasefire deal in Gaza and repeated outbreaks of violence in the occupied West Bank, where more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since October 2023, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Approximately 720,000 Israeli settlers currently live in the West Bank and East al-Quds, in communities widely regarded by the international community as a threat to a contiguous Palestinian state.

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