UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday strongly opposed Israel’s plan to build thousands of new settlers’ units that effectively divide the occupied West Bank into two cut sections.
“Our position is clear. The settlements along the Jordan River in Israel, including East Jerusalem, and the regimes associated with them have been established and maintained in violation of international law,” a statement from the office of his spokesman said.
Emphasizing that such illegal settlements will “enable further root occupation and further strengthen fuel tensions,” the statement also said such a move “systematically erodes the survival rate of the Palestinian state as part of the two states’ solution.”
“The construction of the E1 region will severely undermine the prospects of a viable and adjacent Palestinian state,” he said.
Guterres also urged Israeli authorities to immediately halt progress in the process.
“He reiterates his appeal to the Israeli government to halt all settlement activities, as reaffirmed by the International Court of Justice in its advisory opinion on July 19, 2024, in accordance with its obligations under international law,” the statement added.
On Thursday, Israeli media reported that Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich approved the construction of 3,401 settler units in Mar Admim in eastern Jerusalem, and another 3,515 people in the surrounding area. The purpose of this project is to divide the West Bank into two parts, cut off the connections between the northern and southern cities, and to isolate East Jerusalem.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned the move as part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s vision for “great Israel,” warning that it would settle the occupation and eliminate the viability of the Palestinian state.
The international community, including the United Nations, considers Israeli settlements that are illegal under international law.
In an advisory opinion last July, the International Court declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.