The French Foreign Ministry has reacted strongly to Israel’s new settlement expansion in the West Bank. France condemned the decision to legalize five new settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, stating that this step could negatively affect peace and stability in the region.
The statement recalled that the occupying Israeli administration has seized more than 2,300 hectares of land in the West Bank and East Jerusalem since 2023 with plans to build more than 20,000 new housing units, and emphasized that such steps violate international law.
The French Foreign Ministry said in a statement: “France strongly condemns Israel’s recent settlement decisions in the occupied Palestinian territories. In particular, we strongly condemn Israel’s official recognition of five new settlements, its approval of plans to build more than 5,000 additional homes in some settlements in the West Bank, and its seizure of 1,200 hectares of land in the Jordan Valley.”
The statement also stated that 451,000 Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank and 230,000 in Jerusalem have usurped Palestinian lands and that these settlements are illegal according to international law.
On June 28, upon the request of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the Security Cabinet of the occupying Israel approved the legalization of five illegal settlements in the “Area B” of the West Bank.
