The Israeli Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, plans to allocate a budget of 700 million Shekels for settlement projects in the West Bank, in cooperation with the Minister of National Missions and Settlements, Orit Strock.
The funds are set to be drawn from various government ministry budgets, including a significant portion from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Interior. However, this move has sparked legal challenges due to the approaching municipal elections, raising questions about the timing and implications of the allocation.
This move violates both international law and the stance of key global players, such as the European Union and the United States. The controversial announcement comes in the wake of escalating settlement construction in Palestinian territories since the start of 2023, after Benjamin Netanyahu’s government received a vote of confidence from the Knesset in December 2022.
According to data from Colonization & Wall Resistance Commission, there are currently over 726,000 Israeli settlers residing in 176 settlements and 186 settlement outposts in the West Bank, including Jerusalem. Among these, 86 are categorized as agricultural settlement outposts.
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