Turkey condemns Israeli approval of new settlements

By Merve Aydogan

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey on Friday "strongly" condemned Israel’s approval of thousands of new housing units for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank.

"We strongly condemn the Israeli authorities' continuing the progress of the construction of more than 1,000 houses in the occupied West Bank as part of illegal settlements," said a Foreign Ministry statement.

"The Israeli government needs to put an end to this irresponsible, indifferent position that violates international law and the relevant UN resolutions," it added.

Turkey also underlined that Israel’s approving new settlements is "at odds with the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people, especially the right to life" and that it may "lead to conflict in the region".

The statement also decried the recent “loss of lives of two [Palestinians] in Gaza and Nablus as a result of the interventions made by the occupying power.”

Israel on Thursday approved the construction of hundreds of new housing units for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank.

According to Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now, Israeli officials last year approved the construction of 6,742 new settlement units in the West Bank and East Jerusalem -- the highest number since 2013.

Some half a million Israelis currently live on more than 100 Jewish-only settlements built since Israel occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967.