Israel/Palestinian Territories – Israeli announcements concerning settlements (8 July 2024)

France strongly condemns the recent Israeli decisions concerning settlements in the Palestinian Occupied Territories, particularly Israel’s official recognition of five new settlements, the approval of construction plans for an additional 5,000-plus housing units in several West Bank settlements, and the Israeli government’s seizure of almost 3,000 acres of land in the Jordan Valley.

In their magnitude and their consequences for peace and stability in the West Bank and the region, these decisions by the Israeli government are deeply concerning. Since 2003, the Israeli authorities have approved plans to build more than 20,000 new housing units in a number of settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and have seized more than 5,600 acres of land. These figures are unprecedented since the Oslo Accords.

Israeli settlements in the Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem, constitute a violation of international law. In addition to representing a major obstacle to any just and lasting peace, this policy heightens tensions on the ground at a time when settler violence toward the Palestinian population is on the rise.