JERUSALEM, Feb. 13 – The Israeli government on Sunday authorised nine settlements in the West Bank, reported the German Press Agency (dpa).
The decision was in retaliation for two recent attacks in Jerusalem that killed 10 Israelis, a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said.
The nine communities had “existed for many years; some have existed for decades,” the statement said.
A planning committee would convene in the coming days to approve new settlement homes, the statement added.
It is the first time since Netanyahu took office two months ago that the government has approved new building in Israeli settlements.
Israel gained control of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, among other territories, during the 1967 Six-Day War. Around 600,000 Israelis currently reside in more than 200 settlements there.
In 2016, the UN Security Council described these settlements as a violation of international law and called on Israel to cease all settlement activities.
The security situation in Israel and the Palestinian territories has been extremely tense for weeks. Nine Israelis and one Ukrainian have been killed in Palestinian attacks since the beginning of the year. Israeli army raids, as well as their own attacks, have killed 46 Palestinians this year alone.
