Israel plans over 1,000 West Bank settler homes amid pushback
The announcement brought a sharp response from Jordan's Foreign Ministry
Development is being planned for a total of 1,355 settler homes in the West Bank, Israel’s Construction and Housing Ministry declared on Sunday.
“After a long period of stagnation in construction in Judea and Samaria, I welcome the marketing of over 1,000 housing units,” Housing Minister Ze’ev Elkin said, according to The Jerusalem Post (The Post).
“I will continue to maintain Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria,” he announced, using an alternative name for the West Bank.
The news is bound to bring continued pressure from the United States, which has warned against such proposals in the past.
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price on Friday expressed "concern" towards the planned construction, The Washington Post reported.
He cautioned Israel to “refrain from unilateral steps that exacerbate tension and undercut efforts to advance a negotiated two-state solution.”
Israel’s neighbor to the east, Jordan, also voiced displeasure towards the initiative.
A representative from the country’s foreign ministry, Haitham Abu al-Foul, called the move “a violation of international law and relevant Security Council resolutions,” according to The Post.
A Knesset member (MK) from Meretz, a left-wing party that sits in the Israeli government, echoed negative sentiments on the project.
“Building in settlements outside of Israel harms Israel,” lawmaker Mossi Raz tweeted, according to The Times of Israel.