Israeli official says that the construction of settlements

The Minister of Finance of the extreme right of Israel announced the approval on Thursday of the construction of a contentious settlement in the West Bank occupied by Israel, which the Palestinians and the rights groups are concerned, would sink the plans for a future Palestinian state by effectively reducing the West Bank in two separate parts.

The announcement comes as Several important allies of the United States They have announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state In September.

“This reality finally buries the idea of a Palestinian state, because there is nothing to recognize and nobody to recognize,” said Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. “Anyone in the world who tries to recognize a Palestinian state today will receive a response from us on the field.”

The development in E1, an open extension of land east of Jerusalem, has been considered for more than two decades, but froze due to the pressure of the United States during the previous administrations. On Thursday, Smotrich praised President Trump and the United States ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee as “true friends of Israel as we have never had before.”

The E1 plan has not yet received its final approval, what is expected next week. The plan includes around 3,500 apartments to expand the Maale Adumim settlement, Smotrich said. While there are some bureaucratic steps, if the process moves quickly, infrastructure work could begin in the coming months and housing construction could begin in about a year.

The rights groups quickly condemned the plan. Peace now called it “mortal for the future of Israel and for any possibility of achieving a peaceful solution of two states” that “guarantees many more years of blood spill.”

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the plan as an extension of the crimes of what they say they are genocide, displacement and annexation, reports the Reuters news agency. Israel fiercely denies those characterizations.

It was not clear immediately if Netanyahu supports the E1 plan, said Reuters.

The popularity of Smotrich has fallen in recent months, says Reuters, and the surveys that show that his party would not win a single seat if the parliamentary elections were held today.

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