Israel Greenlights E1 Settlements, Undermining Palestinian Contiguity

Ramallah / PNN /

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has approved plans to build thousands of settlement units in the controversial “E1” area east of Jerusalem, a move critics say undermines the possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state, fragments its population, and consolidates Israeli control over the West Bank.

The Palestinian Presidency, through spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh, condemned the settlement plans as illegal under international law,…