The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned Israel's settlement expansion, saying that authorities in the Jewish state recently approved the construction of 560 new settlement units south of the West Bank city of Bethlehem.
"Construction of new units aims at expanding the settlements that were built on Palestinian citizens' lands in the area," the Ministry said in a statement sent to Xinhua news agency on Friday.
The statement warned that the expansion of settlements in the area of Bethlehem in the West Bank "will isolate Palestinian towns and villages from each other and turn them into isolated islands in an ocean of settlements".
The Foreign Ministry held the Israeli government responsible for the settlement expansion and the seizing of Palestinian lands, and warned of its disastrous consequences for the chances of making peace.
The Palestinians, who claim all of the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, and a majority of the international community consider the settlements a violation of international law and a hurdle to peace.
More than 600,000 Jews live in about 140 settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
--IANS
ksk/
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU