JERUSALEM: Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman has summoned a meeting of top Israeli planning officials for next week to expand Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, his office said Thursday.
A brief statement said he had convened a session of the Supreme Planning Council for Monday “to approve new programs for the planning and sale of housing units in all parts of the (West Bank).”
It did not give details.
The Hebrew-language statement said the move was “part of the policy of Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman to strengthen settlement in Judea and Samaria,” the Hebrew biblical term for the West Bank.
Israel occupied the territory in the Six-Day War of 1967. Today more than 600,000 Jewish settlers live there and in annexed east Jerusalem among 2.9 million Palestinians, with frequent outbreaks of violence between the sides.
The settlements are deemed illegal under international law and widely seen as a main obstacle to peace.
The central committee of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party on Sunday passed a resolution urging its MPs to work for annexation of the West Bank settlements.
Taking such a measure could effectively end prospects for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as there would be little area left for a Palestinian state.
But a significant number of members of Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition say that is precisely what they are seeking and openly oppose a Palestinian state.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday harshly condemned the Likud vote and criticized the US for its silence.
“We hope that this vote serves as a reminder for the international community that the Israeli government, with the full support of the US administration, is not interested in a just and lasting peace,” he said.
The prime minister says he still supports a two-state solution with the Palestinians, although he has also pushed for Jewish settlement expansion in the West Bank.
According to settlement watchdog Peace Now, Israel advanced plans for 6,742 settlement units in the West Bank in 2017, the most since 2013.
Israeli right-wing politicians have seized on support from US President Donald Trump to promote measures seen as further damaging remaining hopes for a two-state solution.
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Israel minister calls for more settlement approvals
Israel minister calls for more settlement approvals
Israel PM holds coalition meeting after objecting to Gaza panel
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a meeting of his ruling coalition partners on Sunday after objecting to the composition of a Gaza advisory panel
JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a meeting of his ruling coalition partners on Sunday after objecting to the composition of a Gaza advisory panel formed by the White House, according to an official and media reports.
The White House announced this week the setting up of a “Gaza Executive Board,” which would operate under a broader “Board of Peace” to be chaired by US President Donald Trump as part of his 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza.
The executive board, described as having an advisory role, includes Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Qatari diplomat Ali Al-Thawadi, alongside other regional and international officials.
Late on Saturday, Netanyahu’s office objected to the composition of the executive board.
“The announcement regarding the composition of the Gaza Executive Board, which is subordinate to the Board of Peace, was not coordinated with Israel and runs contrary to its policy,” the office of Netanyahu said.
“The Prime Minister has instructed the Foreign Affairs Minister to contact the US Secretary of State on this matter.”
It did not explain the reason for its objection, but Israel has previously objected strongly to any Turkish role in post-war Gaza, with relations between the two countries deteriorating sharply since the war began in October 2023.
In addition to naming Turkiye’s foreign minister to the executive board, Trump has also invited Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to join the overarching Board of Peace.
Media reports said that leaders of the country’s ruling coalition were scheduled to meet on Sunday to examine the composition of the executive board.
“There is a meeting scheduled of the coalition at 10:00 am (0800 GMT),” the spokesman of Netanyahu’s Likud Party told AFP, declining to provide further details.
Alongside Likud, the coalition includes the Religious Zionist Party led by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) led by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
The White House said Trump’s plan would include three bodies: the Board of Peace, chaired by Trump; a Palestinian committee of technocrats tasked with governing Gaza; and the Gaza Executive Board, which would play an advisory role.
The Palestinian technocratic committee held its first meeting in Cairo on Saturday.
The diplomatic developments came as the United States said this week that the Gaza truce plan had entered a second phase, shifting from implementing a ceasefire to the disarmament of Hamas, whose October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the Israeli offensive in Gaza.
The White House announced this week the setting up of a “Gaza Executive Board,” which would operate under a broader “Board of Peace” to be chaired by US President Donald Trump as part of his 20-point plan to end the war in Gaza.
The executive board, described as having an advisory role, includes Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Qatari diplomat Ali Al-Thawadi, alongside other regional and international officials.
Late on Saturday, Netanyahu’s office objected to the composition of the executive board.
“The announcement regarding the composition of the Gaza Executive Board, which is subordinate to the Board of Peace, was not coordinated with Israel and runs contrary to its policy,” the office of Netanyahu said.
“The Prime Minister has instructed the Foreign Affairs Minister to contact the US Secretary of State on this matter.”
It did not explain the reason for its objection, but Israel has previously objected strongly to any Turkish role in post-war Gaza, with relations between the two countries deteriorating sharply since the war began in October 2023.
In addition to naming Turkiye’s foreign minister to the executive board, Trump has also invited Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to join the overarching Board of Peace.
Media reports said that leaders of the country’s ruling coalition were scheduled to meet on Sunday to examine the composition of the executive board.
“There is a meeting scheduled of the coalition at 10:00 am (0800 GMT),” the spokesman of Netanyahu’s Likud Party told AFP, declining to provide further details.
Alongside Likud, the coalition includes the Religious Zionist Party led by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) led by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
The White House said Trump’s plan would include three bodies: the Board of Peace, chaired by Trump; a Palestinian committee of technocrats tasked with governing Gaza; and the Gaza Executive Board, which would play an advisory role.
The Palestinian technocratic committee held its first meeting in Cairo on Saturday.
The diplomatic developments came as the United States said this week that the Gaza truce plan had entered a second phase, shifting from implementing a ceasefire to the disarmament of Hamas, whose October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the Israeli offensive in Gaza.
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