Israel approves thousands of new West Bank settlement homes

It is more than eight months since the Israeli government last gave the go-ahead to an expansion of settlements

Palestinian protesters wave flags as Israeli troops take position during a protest against Jewish settlements in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh, near Ramallah. Reuters

Now that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has secured a new term in office, there’s little to prevent him from annexing large parts of the West Bank as early as this summer. AP

An Israeli soldier stands guard during a tour made by Israeli parliament members in the Jordan Valley near the Jewish settlement of Maale Efrayim. Reuters

Israeli soldiers take position as Palestinian demonstrators gather during a protest against expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. AP

King Abdullah (r) of Transjordan on May 13, 1948 in Amman with Abed Al Rahman Azzam, the secretary general of the Arab League and Abd Al Elah Ibn Ali, the Prince Regent of Iraq, the day before the beginning of the first Arab-Israeli War. AFP

Palestinians surrender to Israeli soldiers in June 1967 in the occupied territory of the West Bank after Israel launched a pre-emptive attack on Egypt and Syria and seized the Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights in Syria as well as the West Bank and Arab East Jerusalem. AFP

A Palestinian child plays in a refugee camp in Jordan on June 23, 1967. AFP

PLO chairman Yasser Arafat delivers a speech to the Palestine National Council meeting to make the historic proclamation of a Palestinian state in the Israeli-occupied territories and to recognize Israel in the Palace of Nations conference hall on November 12, 1988, in Algiers. AFP

US President Bill Clinton stands between PLO leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzahk Rabin as they shake hands for the first time on September 13, 1993 at the White House. AFP

Hussein Ibn Talal, King of Jordan and Israeli Premier Yitzhak Rabin shake hands after they exchanged the documents of the Peace Treaty at Beit Gabriel conference centre on November 10, 1994 on the southern shore of the Sea of Galilee. AFP

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during the Palestinian leadership meeting and threatened to end security coordination with Israel and the United States, saying Israeli annexation would ruin chances for peace. AFP

Houses in the Israeli settlement of settlement of Kedumim are seen in the foreground as part of the Palestinian city of Nablus is seen in the background (far left) in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Reuters

Israel's controversial concrete barrier (C) separating the Jewish settlement of Neve Yaakov (foreground) in the northern part of east Jerusalem and the Palestinian area of al-Ram (background) in the occupied West Bank. AFP

An Israeli activist holds a banner during a protest against the US peace plan for the Middle East, in front of the US ambassador's residence in Jerusalem, on May 15, 2020, as Palestinians commemorate the 72nd anniversary of the 1948 Nakba or "catastrophe". AFP

A Palestinian shepherd tends to his camels on arid land considered to be in "Area C" (under Israeli security and administrative control), southeast of Yatta town in the southern West Bank district of Hebron. AFP

A general view of the Israeli settlement of Elon Moreh, as seen from the Palestinian village of Azmout near the West Bank City of Nablus. EPA

The West Bank Jewish settlement of Maale Michmash. AP

Israel on Wednesday approved thousands of new homes in settlements in the occupied West Bank.

The government plans 2,166 new homes in existing settlements, ending an eight-month lull since the last approved expansions.

About 2,000 more homes are expected to be approved on Thursday.

Most countries consider the West Bank settlements illegal under international law, a charge Israel denies.

US President Donald Trump gave US blessing to Israeli annexation of large chunks of the West Bank, including the settlements considered illegal under international law, in his controversial “peace plan” unveiled in January.

As part of his election campaign and eventual coalition deal with rival Benny Gantz, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to annex much of the West Bank and Jordan Valley from July 1. But on August 18, he said the plan was frozen after a conditional agreement was reached with the UAE to establish ties.

About 11,000 Israeli settlers live in the Jordan Valley area and as of January this year, about 400,000 lived in illegal settlements in the wider occupied West Bank.

Mr Netanyahu's plan drew global condemnation and led Jordan to say it would end co-operation and ties with Israel if the plan went through.

UAE Minister of State and Ambassador to the US Yousef Al Otaiba wrote a Hebrew op-ed in Israel's largest newspaper to say that annexation would make relations more difficult and urging the people to reject annexation.

Last month, Israel signed the Abraham Accords with the UAE and Bahrain. The agreement to establish ties was linked to halting the annexation of the occupied West Bank or Jordan Valley.