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Israel's security cabinet has given its endorsement to the establishment of 19 fresh communities in the occupied Palestinian territories, marking a continued campaign for territorial growth.

Hardline Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who lives in a settlement and advocated for the measure in concert with Defence Minister Israel Katz, declared that the move was about thwarting the creation of a sovereign Palestine.

It is important to note that Israeli settlements in the disputed territories are deemed unlawful.

The decision has drawn censure from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The United Nations chief Antonio Guterres has said that Israel's "unceasing" settlement expansion exacerbates frictions, curtails Palestinians' access to territory, and threatens the feasibility of a sovereign Palestinian state.

Rising Tensions and Political Fallout

Unrest in the region has increased sharply since the conflict in the Gaza Strip began in October 2023, further heightening apprehensions that settlement expansion could solidify the Israeli presence and weaken the prospects for a two-state solution.

The concept of two states refers to the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with Jerusalem's eastern sector as its capital, largely along the borders that existed prior to the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

Since taking office in 2022, the incumbent Israeli government has significantly increased the approval of fresh communities and begun the formal recognition for informal outposts, recognising them as "extensions" of existing communities.

Sustained Growth

The latest decision takes the cumulative figure of communities authorized over the preceding 36 months to sixty-nine, according to Smotrich.

These approvals arrive a short time after the United Nations reported that settlement expansion had hit its peak since the year 2017.

The newest batch of authorizations encompasses the revival of two settlements — Ganim and Kadim — which were removed about in 2005.

Previously, Israel approved twenty-two new settlements in the occupied West Bank - labeled as the largest expansion in many years.

In a related development, the Israeli government gave the go-ahead for plans last summer to construct in excess of three thousand homes in the controversial E1 area between Jerusalem and the Maale Adumim community, a project that had been frozen for many years amid fierce international opposition.

On that occasion, the Finance Minister remarked it would "end the notion of a Palestinian state."

Population Realities and International Reactions

An estimated seven hundred thousand Israeli settlers dwell in around 160 communities in the occupied territories, according to the Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now. This is land that the Palestinian people envision for a prospective independent state.

Settlement expansion has angered neighboring countries who have consistently said it erodes prospects for a two-state solution.

It has also fueled concerns about the potential incorporation of the disputed territories.

Former American President Donald Trump had previously cautioned Israel about such a move, stating to TIME magazine that Israel would forfeit its backing from the US if it happened.

In a policy change, the UK - together with other countries including Australia and Canada - formally recognized a Palestinian state, a significant although primarily ceremonial adjustment in foreign policy.

The Israeli government was against the move, with PM Benjamin Netanyahu declaring that a Palestinian state "will not happen."