France condemns Israeli occupation settlements expansion

France strongly condemned on Monday Israel's new plans to expand its illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories and its official recognition of five new ones in the West Bank. In a statement, France's Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the plans to build more than 5000 extra residential units in several West Bank illegal settlements and the takeover of 1200 hectares of land in the Jordan Valley. The Ministry affirmed that the decisions taken by the Israeli government are extremely dangerous due to their magnitude and consequences on peace and stability in the West Bank and the region. The Ministry also revealed that since 2023, Israeli authorities have approved plans to construct over 20,000 new housing units in various settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Additionally, they have seized more than 2,300 hectares of land, highlighting that these figures are unprecedented since the Oslo Accords. France emphasized that Israel's colonization of Palestinian territorie s, including East Jerusalem, violates international law. The statement further explained that this policy not only poses a significant obstacle to achieving a just and lasting peace but also exacerbates tensions on the ground, leading to an increase in violent acts committed by settlers against the Palestinian population. Source: Kuwait News Agency