Germany on Friday urged the Israeli government to halt settlement construction in the West Bank, following remarks from Israel’s far-right finance minister announcing plans to begin work on thousands of homes that would further divide the Palestinian territory.
Germany “firmly rejects the Israeli government’s announcements regarding the approval of thousands of new housing units in Israeli settlements in the West Bank,” said a foreign ministry spokesperson in a statement.
Plans for the “E1” settlement and the expansion of Maale Adumim would further restrict the mobility of the Palestinian population in the West Bank by splitting it in half and cutting the area off from East Jerusalem, said the spokesperson.
Minister’s Settlement Plan
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Thursday that work would start on the long-delayed settlement, a move that his office said would “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state.
In a statement, Smotrich’s spokesperson said the minister had approved the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Standing at the site of the planned settlement in Maale Adumim on Thursday, Smotrich, a settler himself, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump had agreed to the revival of the E1 development, though there was no immediate confirmation from either.
“Whoever in the world is trying to recognise a Palestinian state today will receive our answer on the ground, not with documents nor with decisions or statements, but with facts. Facts of houses, facts of neighbourhoods,” Smotrich said.
Germany has repeatedly warned the Israeli government to stop settlement construction in the West Bank, which violates international law and U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Such moves complicate steps towards a negotiated two-state solution and an end to Israeli occupation of the West Bank, said the spokesperson.
The Palestinian government, allies and campaign groups condemned the scheme, calling it illegal and saying the fragmentation of territory would rip up peace plans for the region.
(With inputs from Reuters)
