Israel said Thursday it was moving forward with controversial plans to build thousands of new housing units in the occupied West Bank, a development far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said would “permanently bury the idea of a Palestinian state.”
To the delight of the Israeli settler movement, but horror of Palestinians and settlement watchdogs, Smotrich confirmed that the government was reviving a long-stalled project to the east of Jerusalem. It is expected to be approved next week.
He presented the move as Israel’s response to the recent wave of countries announcing their intention to recognize a Palestinian state. The government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has categorically rejected any prospect of Palestinian statehood, a position reinforced in a resolution passed by the Israeli Knesset last year.
Smotrich has repeatedly lobbied Netanyahu to annex the occupied West Bank and apply Israeli sovereignty to the entire territory.
Israeli settlements in the West Bank are Jewish villages, towns, and cities built on land the United Nations and the international community have designated for a Palestinian state.
