Germany rejects Israeli settlement expansion in occupied West Bank

Germany has urged Israel to halt settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank after the country’s far-right finance minister announced the start of a project for thousands of new homes in a development that would cut the Palestinian territory in two.

“We firmly reject the Israeli government’s announcements regarding the approval of thousands of new housing units in Israeli settlements in the West Bank,” a German foreign ministry spokesperson said on Friday.

Berlin warned that the planned “E1” settlement, along with the expansion of Maale Adumim, would divide the West Bank, limit Palestinian movement, and sever the area from East Jerusalem.

On Thursday, far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said work would begin on the long-delayed project, a move his office described as one that would “bury” the possibility of a Palestinian state. His spokesperson said the plan would see 3,401 homes built for settlers between Maale Adumim and Jerusalem.

Germany has repeatedly said settlement construction violates international law and United Nations Security Council resolutions. Such actions, the foreign ministry stressed, make it harder to reach a negotiated two-state solution and end the occupation of the West Bank.