{"id":454800,"date":"2026-05-22T16:09:33","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T16:09:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/454800\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T16:09:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T16:09:33","slug":"european-powers-urge-israel-to-end-w-bank-settlement-expansion-warn-of-settler-violence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/454800\/","title":{"rendered":"European powers urge Israel to end W. Bank settlement expansion, warn of settler violence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Italy, France, Britain and Germany urged Israel on Friday to stop expanding its settlements in the West Bank, saying the government was \u201cundermining stability\u201d and prospects for a two-state solution.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe call on the government of Israel to end its expansion of settlements and administrative powers, ensure accountability for settler violence and investigate allegations against Israeli forces,\u201d said the countries in a joint statement.<\/p>\n

Noting that the situation in the West Bank had \u201cdeteriorated significantly\u201d in the past few months, the countries said settler violence towards Palestinians was at \u201cunprecedented levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe policies and practices of the Israeli government, including a further entrenchment of Israeli control, are undermining stability and prospects for a two-state solution,\u201d read the statement.<\/p>\n

The countries condemned Israel\u2019s E1 settlement plan \u2014 a new construction project expected to build some 3,400 housing units in the West Bank over 12 square kilometers (4.6 square miles) \u2014 saying it would be a \u201cserious breach of international law.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tGet The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition
\n\t\t\tby email and never miss our top stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\tBy signing up, you agree to the terms<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cBusinesses should not bid for construction tenders for E1 or other settlement developments. They should be aware of legal and reputational consequences of participating in settlement construction, including the risk of involving themselves in serious breaches of international law,\u201d the countries said.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tPalestinian students walk to school using an alternative route that is nearly twice as long because a fence separates their village from the nearby Israeli settlement of Carmel, near the West Bank village of Umm al-Khair, Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (AP Photo\/Mahmoud Illean)<\/p>\n

The statement also called on Israel to lift its financial restrictions on the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian economy.<\/p>\n

The four countries also noted that they \u201cstrongly oppose those, including members of the Israeli government, who argue for annexation and forcible displacement of the Palestinian population.\u201d<\/p>\n

The West Bank settlement movement recorded an unprecedented year in 2025, with records broken \u2014 and in some cases surpassed by wide margins \u2014 across multiple measures of expansion in the contested territory, according to figures from an anti-settlement watchdog.<\/p>\n

An annual review by the Peace Now organization earlier this year found that a record number of legal settlements were either approved or retroactively legalized in 2025; a record number of illegal settlement outposts were established; a record number of housing units were approved in the planning process; and tenders for the construction of a record number of housing units were published.<\/p>\n

The group criticized the government, saying that while it had failed to provide homes and rehabilitation for the thousands of Israelis evacuated from the north and south during the wars following the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre, \u201cin the settlements the government is like a well-oiled machine, investing billions and promoting construction and planning, for the benefit of a handful of settlers in the government\u2019s camp.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023, near-daily violence has also rocked the West Bank, which Israel has controlled since 1967.<\/p>\n

The joint statement came after a tense week in European-Israeli relations following the publication of a video that revealed the harsh treatment of European activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla while in Israeli custody.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir published the video that showed activists forced to kneel with their foreheads to the ground and their hands tied.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tNational Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir taunts detained flotilla activists at Ashdod Port on May 20, 2026. (Screenshot\/Ben Gvir\u2019s X account)<\/p>\n

Italy and Spain later called on the EU to sanction Ben Gvir, while Ireland urged the EU to take action against Israel over the activists\u2019 treatment, according to a leaked letter seen by AFP.<\/p>\n

The United Kingdom, meanwhile, summoned Israel\u2019s most senior diplomat in Britain following what it called the \u201cinflammatory video.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also on Friday, the Dutch House of Representatives voted in favor of a government-backed measure to ban importing and selling products from \u201cillegal Israeli settlements,\u201d Foreign Trade Minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma announced on X.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cabinet is sending a strong signal to Israel \u2014 the Netherlands doesn\u2019t want to contribute to maintaining\u201d the settlements, Sjoerdsma says.<\/p>\n

He called on the rest of Europe to pass similar measures, noting that the International Court of Justice had ruled<\/a> that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal and that Israel has effectively annexed large parts of the territory.<\/p>\n

Sjoerdsma linked to a statement<\/a> from the Dutch cabinet that indicates the ban will also apply to Israeli communities in the Golan Heights, which Israel annexed in 1981.<\/p>\n


\n\t\t\t\tWhich gorgeous bird do you prefer?\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

THIS MONTH ONLY: Join our reader support group for as little as $6\/month and receive an exclusive tote bag featuring one of Israel\u2019s native birds.<\/p>\n

Choose between the\u00a0Duchifat (orange), Israel’s national bird, or the Shaldag (blue), a beloved symbol of the Israeli landscape.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As a member of the Times of Israel Community,\u00a0you’ll also enjoy:<\/p>\n


\nAn ad-free experience of our site and podcasts.
\nExclusive access to award-winning films via DocuNation.
\nWeekly letters from founding editor David Horovitz. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\tJoin ToI Community & claim my bag\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\tCLAIM YOUR BAG\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\tAlready a member? Sign in to stop seeing this<\/a><\/p>\n


\n\t\t\t\tYou’re a dedicated reader\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n


\n\t\t\t\t\t\tWe\u2019re really pleased that you\u2019ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month. \n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why we started the Times of Israel – to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.<\/p>\n

So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven\u2019t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.<\/p>\n

For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.<\/p>\n

Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel<\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\tJoin Our Community\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\tJoin Our Community\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\tAlready a member? Sign in to stop seeing this<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Italy, France, Britain and Germany urged Israel on Friday to stop expanding its settlements in the West Bank,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":454801,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[196049,63,42,212165,837,43,40,38,41,39,123131],"class_list":["post-454800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-eu-european-union","tag-europe","tag-headlines","tag-israel-eu-relations","tag-itamar-ben-gvir","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-west-bank-settlements"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/454800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=454800"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/454800\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/454801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=454800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=454800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=454800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}