European countries urge Israel to halt settlement expansion
Six European countries issued a joint statement to condemn Israel’s plan to construct over 7,000 new settler units in the occupied West Bank.
Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Poland, and Spain called for the immediate halt of Israel’s illegal expansion of settlements and the reversal of the legalization of settlement outposts.
The international community regards all Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Al-Quds as illegal under international law. The United Nations Security Council has passed several resolutions denouncing Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied territories.
The European statement came in the wake of an attack by hundreds of armed Israeli settlers on the village of Huwara and surrounding areas. The settlers set fire to dozens of houses and cars, resulting in the death of one Palestinian and injuring at least 390 others. The European Union’s envoy to Palestine has called for accountability and justice for the perpetrators.
The attack was reportedly in retaliation for the killing of two Israeli brothers by a Palestinian fighter in Huwara.