Israel intends to build 3000 new settlements

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sanctioned building of 3,000 new settlements in the territory of the West Bank in addition to the recently approved 2,500 units. Earlier in January, Israeli authorities approved the construction of 2,500 housing units in the occupied West Bank despite December's UN Security Council resolution calling on Israel to immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. Netanyahu wrote in his Twitter account



that he and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman sanctioned construction of over 3,000 new housing units in Judea and Samaria. 

​Over 500,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, according to United Nations figures. The settlements are considered illegal by the United Nations, and West Bank territory is considered occupied territory by the International Court of Justice. The West Bank has been occupied by Israel since 1967.