The Israeli Municipality in Jerusalem will approve the new settler homes in different existing illegal settlements in East Jerusalem.
Israeli authorities will approve on Wednesday the construction of over 1,000 additional settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem, according to Israeli media cited by the Anadolu news agency.
📍 Israel set to approve over 1,000 additional settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem
➡️ The international community, including the UN, considers Israeli settlements illegal under international law https://t.co/GrjH39sy4s pic.twitter.com/OKfnSNGt6w
— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) March 5, 2025
The agency reported that public broadcaster KAN said the Planning and Building Committee of the Israeli Municipality in Jerusalem will approve the new settler homes in different existing illegal settlements in East Jerusalem.
Under the Israeli plan, 380 settlement units will be built in the Nof Zion settlement near the Jabal al-Mukaber area in addition to a school, two synagogues, and commercial areas, KAN reported.
‘Strengthening’ Jewish Majority
According to the reports, 650 illegal settlement units, commercial areas, a school, a synagogue, a community center, and kindergartens will also be built between Kibbutz Ramat Rachel and the Har Homa settlements near the Palestinian neighborhood of Sur Baher in southern East Jerusalem.
“They want to displace us without anyone noticing.”
In The FloodGate’s latest episode, Alaa Hathleen from Masafer Yatta talks about settler attacks, ethnic cleansing, and why there is no two-state solution for Palestine.
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— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) March 4, 2025
A proposal was reportedly sent last week by Jerusalem’s Deputy Mayor Arieh King, a right-wing politician, to the Israeli government to promote the expansion of the Jerusalem municipality boundary to include settlements classified in the West Bank areas, in a move that would strengthen the Jewish majority in Jerusalem.
According to Israeli estimates, the Palestinians represent 39 percent of the residents of both East and West Jerusalem.
Increased Israeli Control
A report last week released by the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Negotiations Affairs Department revealed that 44.5% of the West Bank is now under Israeli control due to settlement expansion and land annexation, Anadolu reported.
The report, which included a newly published map, highlighted the rapid growth of illegal Israeli Jewish settlements, with five new settlements and 50 outposts established in 2024 alone.
44.5% of the West Bank Under Israeli Control as Settlements Expand – Report
It also states that the illegal settler population in the West Bank has tripled since 1995, reaching approximately 740,000 settlers.
According to the report, much of this expansion has taken place behind the separation wall or in areas under direct Israeli control, making the two-state solution increasingly unviable.
It warned that if construction continues at the current rate, settlement areas could expand fivefold on confiscated Palestinian land.
Advancement of Settlement Projects
The United Nations considers Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory illegal under international law and has repeatedly called for a halt to their expansion, warning that settlement activity undermines any prospects for a just resolution to the conflict.
The Israeli Peace Now movement has said that “since early December 2024, the Higher Planning Council has been holding weekly meetings to advance settlement housing projects, with approvals at each session ranging from several hundred to over a thousand units,” in the occupied West Bank.
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A key policy change implemented by the Benjamin Netanyahu-led government and Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in June 2023 has allowed for the acceleration of settlement approvals.
In July last year, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared that Israel’s long-standing occupation of Palestinian territories is “unlawful,” demanding the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
(Anadolu, PC)
