New Israeli settlement expansion aims to seize more Palestinian land: Hamas

The Hamas resistance movement has strongly condemned Israel’s approval of 18 new and amended settlement jurisdiction areas in the occupied West Bank, saying the move is aimed at seizing more Palestinian land and expanding Israeli control over the territory.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Gaza-based group said the move marks a further escalation of Israel’s fascist settlement policy and is part of efforts to confiscate more Palestinian land and impose annexation and forced displacement.

“We warn against rising land confiscation activities, daily exhaustion of new areas in the West Bank, deprivation of the necessities of life, severance of connections, and transformation of these areas into isolated regions,” the statement read.

Hamas stressed that Israel’s settlement projects would not give the Tel Aviv regime any right or sovereignty over Palestinian land, nor would they guarantee its security or stability.

“The occupying regime’s settlement plans and attempts to impose a reality of annexation and displacement will be shattered by the steadfastness and resilience of Palestinians, and their adherence to their homeland and rights. Our people, who have faced decades of occupation and aggression, will not give up their land, and Israeli crimes and brutality will not succeed in uprooting them or breaking their will,” the statement said.

Hamas also called on the international community to fulfill its responsibilities rather than limit its response to condemnations of Israeli settlement expansion. It urged international actors to hold Israeli authorities accountable, halt settlement projects and compel Israel to abide by international law and resolutions.

“We call upon our people in the West Bank to enhance all forms of resistance, and activate means of confrontation to thwart this settlement expansion plan. Protection of homeland is an ultimate responsibility, and holding onto it is at the forefront of defending the rights of the Palestinian nation and the future of the Palestinian cause,” the statement concluded.

Israeli occupation, not just E1 settlement expansion plan, ‘must end’: UN rapporteur

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, says the Israeli occupation, not solely the illegal E1 settlement expansion plan, must come to an end.

On Tuesday, Israeli authorities approved 18 new and revised settlement jurisdiction areas in the occupied West Bank, paving the way for the expansion of illegal settlements and the establishment of new outposts.

According to the Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission (CWRC), the package includes jurisdiction areas for new settlements approved by the Israeli cabinet, plans to turn settlement outposts into independent settlements, and revisions and expansions to the jurisdiction areas of existing settlements and settlement councils.

The move comes as Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite mounting international pressure, continues to push for the construction and expansion of illegal settlements across the West Bank. He has also pledged to encourage a significant influx of immigrants into the occupied Palestinian territory.

Settlement outposts, which typically consist of a handful of mobile homes or other temporary structures, are considered illegal even under Israeli law. Their formal recognition and approval, however, have increased significantly in recent years.

Israel’s continued settlement expansion has drawn growing international condemnation, particularly as violence by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has intensified.

The international community views the settlements as illegal under international law and the Geneva Conventions. The UN Security Council has condemned Israel’s settlement activities in several resolutions.

In July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared Israel’s decades-long occupation of historical Palestine illegal.

The ICJ demanded the evacuation of all existing settlements in the West Bank and East al-Quds. 

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