UN, European countries oppose Israel’s settlement plan in West Bank

(VOVWORLD) - The United Nations and several Western countries on Tuesday expressed concern about Israel’s newly approved resettlement plan in the occupied West Bank, warning that the plan to build 3,400 new housing units will physically sever the West Bank from East Jerusalem and pose an "existential threat" to the prospects of a two-state solution.

Israel’s settlement area in Givat Zeev, West Bank (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said the decision will “put an end to prospects of a two-state solution” and urged Israel to reverse its decision. He said Israel’s continued implementation of the plan goes against UN resolutions and escalate tensions in the Middle East.

British Foreign Minister David Lammy said the plan is a flagrant breach of international law and warned that it will undermine the foundations of the two-state solution and threaten long-term stability in the region.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office in Berlin said the settlement construction violates international law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions. “It complicates a negotiated two-state solution and an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, as demanded by the International Court of Justice,” he said.

The European Union in a statement slammed the plan as a “breach of international law” and called on Israel to halt its settlement construction altogether.