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Israel's top security body has formally approved the formalization of 19 additional communities in the occupied West Bank, signaling a sustained push for territorial growth.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a settler who proposed the move alongside Defence Minister Israel Katz, stated that the approval was about thwarting the creation of a Palestinian state.

It is important to note that Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are viewed as illegal.

The decision has sparked censure from Saudi Arabia. The United Nations chief Antonio Guterres has commented that Israel's "relentless" settlement expansion fuels tensions, limits Palestinians' use of territory, and threatens the feasibility of a sovereign Palestinian state.

Escalating Tensions and Political Repercussions

Unrest in the region has escalated since the war in Gaza started in October 2023, further heightening apprehensions that settlement expansion could solidify Israel's occupation and weaken the chance for a two-state solution.

The two-state solution envisions the formation of a State of Palestine in the Palestinian territories, with East Jerusalem as its seat of government, roughly along the borders that existed prior to the 1967 Middle East war.

Since coming to power in late 2022, the present government in Jerusalem has greatly accelerated the approval of new settlements and begun the process of legalization for informal settler outposts, classifying them as "extensions" of established settlements.

Sustained Expansion

The latest approval pushes the total number of settlements authorized over the last three years to 69, according to the Finance Minister.

These authorizations are announced only a few days after the United Nations reported that settlement expansion had reached its most intense pace since 2017.

The newest group of authorizations features the rebuilding of two settlements — Ganim and Kadim — which were dismantled about in 2005.

In a previous move, Israel approved 22 additional settlements in the territories - what was the biggest expansion in decades.

Furthermore, the Israeli government also approved plans in August to construct more than three thousand residences in the controversial E1 project between the capital and the Maale Adumim community, a project that had been stalled for decades amid intense international objection.

On that occasion, Smotrich stated it would "end the concept of a Palestinian state."

Demographic Facts and Global Response

Roughly 700,000 Israeli settlers live in around 160 settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, according to the Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now. This is land that the Palestinian people aspire to have for a future independent state.

Settlement expansion has angered Arab states who have consistently argued it harms hopes for a peaceful two-state outcome.

It has furthermore raised concerns about the possible incorporation of the occupied West Bank.

Former American President Donald Trump had previously admonished the Israeli leadership about such a move, telling a publication that the country would forfeit all its support from the United States if it occurred.

In a policy change, the United Kingdom - joined by other countries including Australia and Canada - acknowledged a State of Palestine, a major although largely symbolic adjustment in government policy.

Israel strongly rejected the move, with PM Benjamin Netanyahu saying that a Palestinian state "is not going to occur."