The head of the Wall and Settlements Resistance Commission, Mu’ayyad Shaaban, condemned in a statement the project to expand the Eli settlement, which occupies land in the villages of al-Sawiya, al-Lubban, and Qaryut.

The goal is to separate the north and center of the West Bank through settlement blocs, Shaaban emphasized, recalling that the Israeli government recently approved two proposals to build a total of nearly 1,000 homes.

The official warned that last July, the neighboring country studied 39 plans to expand settlements in the West Bank, including the occupied area of East Jerusalem, following the strategy of apartheid policy practiced by the Israeli authorities, the B’Tselem director noted.

In the monthly report on “Violations of the Occupation and Colonial Expansion Measures,” Shaaban denounced that the Israeli armed forces carried out 1,355 attacks during that period, and settlers carried out another 466.

More than 750,000 Jews currently live in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, spread across 180 settlements and 256 outposts, according to official data.

The international community also rejects this expansionist policy and considers the territory part of the future Palestinian state.

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