Nine countries urge Israel to end expansion of illegal West Bank settlements

Nine countries have condemned Israel’s plans to dramatically expand its illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. In a joint statement, the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and the Netherlands emphasised that such settlements violate international law and that “construction projects in the E1 area would be no exception”. Israel plans to build thousands of homes in the E1 area, which would connect Jerusalem and the existing illegal settlement of Maale Adumim to the east.