Palestine welcomes pressure by nine counties on Israel over illegal settlements
Palestine welcomes pressure by nine counties on Israel over illegal settlements Palestine has welcomed international moves against Israel’s illegal settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian presidency said a statement by nine countries condemning Israel’s plans to expand settlements was “an important step in the right direction”. The response came as lawmakers in the Netherlands backed a government measure to ban the import and sale of products from illegal Israeli settlements. Palestine’s Foreign Ministry called the Dutch move “significant” and urged other countries to follow suit. The measures add to growing pressure on Israel over its settlement project, which entrenches occupation, fragments Palestinian land and pushes annexation deeper into the West Bank.