Israel Agrees To Stop Granting Permits For Jewish Settlements Construction In West Bank For Six Months

Illustration of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. (Wikimedia Commons/Ralf Roletschek)

JAKARTA - Israeli authorities have told the United States they will control the approval of new settlement outposts in the West Bank, the prime minister's office said on Monday, a day after a potential diplomatic crisis was avoided at the United Nations over Israeli-Palestinian tensions.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office says Israel will not approve any new settlements in the West Bank beyond the nine outposts built without permits that were approved retroactively earlier this month.

However, the statement did not mention the thousands of additional homes in existing settlements, which officials said would be approved soon.

Earlier, a UN Security Council resolution put forward by Palestine and its supporters, due for discussion on Monday, would have condemned Israel for expanding settlements and demanded a halt to such activity in the future.

According to diplomats, US President Joe Biden's Administration managed to prevent the vote by convincing Israel and the Palestinians to agree to a six-month freeze on any unilateral actions they might take.

"Israel notified the US that in the coming months, they will not authorize any new settlements beyond the nine approved settlements," PM Netanyahu's office said, launching The National News on February 20.

Illustration of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. (Wikimedia Commons/Ralf Rouletschek)

Dozens of informal outposts are scattered across the occupied West Bank, in addition to a number of existing settlements. These outposts, which are sometimes no more than a handful of trailer homes but can also resemble small villages, were built without permits, but are often tolerated and even encouraged by the Israeli government.

The international community considers all Israeli developments in the occupied lands to be illegal or illegal.

The plans for the UN vote are a headache for the Biden Administration, at a time when Washington is focusing its diplomatic efforts on Russia's war with Ukraine. It is known, President Biden made an unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday.

Furthermore, the statement also highlighted the deep differences between the US Administration, which supports Palestinian statehood and opposes settlements, and the Israeli Government which consists of ultranationalists who oppose Palestinian independence, promising to expedite settlement construction.

Promises to delay approval for the construction of settlement outposts contravene the government's guiding principles and could result in PM Netanyahu facing a backlash from his right-wing, pro-settlement coalition partners.

Construction on existing settlements is expected to continue, as it did under previous Israeli governments.

Prime Minister Netanyahu's office also said they would continue to demolish illegally built Palestinian homes in 60 percent of the West Bank, which is under full Israeli control.

Illustration of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. (Wikimedia Commons/Ralf Rouletschek)

Palestinian residents of the area say it is nearly impossible to get a building permit from the Israeli authorities.

The United States, along with much of the international community, say the settlements are an obstacle to peace, as they take over land that the Palestinians want for their state.

More than 700,000 Israeli Jews now live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, territories captured in the 1967 war and claimed by the Palestinians.