Legalization is carried out over US objection; is the 1st made by the Israeli government since 2012
The Israeli government announced this Sunday (12.Feb.2023) that it will regularize 9 settlements built in the West Bank. The measure was taken as a response to the attack that took place in Jerusalem on Friday (Feb 10), in which 1 Palestinian ran over and killed 3 Israelis.
The camps were built in the West Bank without state permission. Although all of them are illegal under international law, some of them are considered illegal by Israel as well. Now, with the change, they can be officially approved.
The decision of the cabinet of the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, contradicts what Joe Biden, president of the United States, defends. It is the 1st legalization of illegal outposts by the Israeli government since 2012.
The Americans say they are opposed to unilateral moves by Israel that could jeopardize the work of negotiating a solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine. The expansion of these settlements is included in these movements.
“The Cabinet of Security will meet today [domingo (12.fev.2023)] to prepare for a broader operation against those who practice terrorism and their supporters in East Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria, avoiding – as much as possible – harm to those uninvolved. Furthermore, today the government will authorize the Security Cabinet to strengthen the settlement on our land, which the terrorists are trying to eradicate,” Netanyahu said at the opening of the ministerial meeting held this Sunday.
The Israeli ministers discussed, for 5 hours, the escalation of violence in the West Bank and also decided to expand the operation in Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. The Security Cabinet unanimously decided to regularize the 9 communities in the conflict zone.
escalation of conflict
On January 27th, a shooting attack on a synagogue left 7 dead, also in Jerusalem. The attack would have been a response to an Israeli operation the day before, when Israeli soldiers killed at least 9 Palestinians in the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank.
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, the attack left another 20 people injured by gunfire. Four had serious fractures. There is no information about the health status of the victims.
The attack escalated the imbroglio between Palestine and Israel and the fear of a larger conflict by the international community.
After the deaths, the Islamic Jihad -Palestinian militant group that focuses on the fight against Israel- threatened end the truce negotiated with the country in August 2022.
Hazem Qassem, spokesman for Hamas, the main Islamist movement in Palestine, said in an interview with Reuters on the occasion that “The operation is a response to occupation-led crime in Jenin and a natural response to the occupation’s criminal actions.”
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