• Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, UK sign condemnation
• Joint statement warns settlement expansion violates international law and risks fueling regional instability
• Decision includes retroactive legalization of outposts and settlements on land where Palestinians were evacuated

JERUSALEM (TDR) — Fourteen countries issued a joint statement Wednesday condemning Israel’s recent approval of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, warning the decision violates international law and threatens regional stability. Notably absent from the condemnation was the United States, making it the only G7 nation not to sign the statement.

The coalition consisting of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom called on Israel to reverse the decision and halt settlement expansion in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2334.

“We, States of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom condemn the approval by the Israeli security cabinet of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.”

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The Israeli cabinet approved the legalization and establishment of 19 settler outposts on December 11, according to an Israeli source familiar with the matter. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, himself a settler, announced the move in a social media post Sunday.

Violations Of International Law

The joint statement, released by the French foreign ministry, warned that the settlement expansion represents a dangerous escalation in Israeli territorial policy.

“We recall that such unilateral actions, as part of a wider intensification of the settlement policies in the West Bank, not only violate international law but also risk fueling instability. They risk undermining the implementation of the Comprehensive Plan for Gaza amid efforts to progress to phase 2 and harming prospects for long-term peace and security across the region.”

Israeli settlements overall are considered illegal under international law. Outposts, in addition to being illegal under international law, are also illegal under Israeli law. Settlers establish outposts with the goal of receiving authorization for the illegal buildings in the future.

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Many of the newly authorized settlements are deep within the West Bank. The cabinet decision included retroactive legalization of some previously established settlement outposts or neighborhoods of existing settlements, and the creation of settlements on land where Palestinians were evacuated, Israel’s Finance Ministry stated.

Canada’s Defense Minister Anita Anand issued a separate statement emphasizing the threat to regional peace.

“The continued settlement expansion is contrary to international law and puts at risk the 20 Point Peace Plan. Clearly such action undermines the prospects for a two-state solution and the ultimate objective of Israelis and Palestinians living side by side in peace and security.”

Smotrich Aims To Block Palestinian State

Two of the settlements legalized in the latest approval are Kadim and Ganim, which were among four West Bank settlements dismantled in 2005 as part of Israel’s withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Israel’s government in March 2023 repealed a 2005 act that evacuated the four outposts and barred Israelis from re-entering the areas.

Smotrich stated Sunday the move was aimed at preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state. The approval comes as the United States pushes Israel and Hamas to move ahead with the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire, which took effect October 10. The U.S.-brokered plan calls for a possible “pathway” to a Palestinian state, something the settlements are aimed at preventing.

Middle East Eye reported Washington is understood to have been privately frustrated with the Israelis for moving ahead with something President Trump himself promised Arab and Muslim leaders in September that Israel would not do: annex the occupied West Bank.

When Secretary of State Marco Rubio was pressed on settlement expansion and settler attacks on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank—some of whom were Palestinian-Americans—on Friday, he largely deferred to the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, which he said has been overseeing these matters.

Record Settlement Expansion

In May, Israel announced it would establish 22 new settlements in what Israeli settlement watchdog organization Peace Now said was the largest expansion of settlements in more than 30 years. Israel’s current right-wing government has established dozens since its term began in 2023, marking a dramatic acceleration and expansion of settlement activity.

Earlier this month, the United Nations said the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank—all of which are illegal under international law—had reached its highest level since tracking began in 2017. The number of settlements rose nearly 50 percent, from 141 in 2022 to 210 following the latest round of authorizations, according to Peace Now.

A United Nations report released last month found that Israeli settlers launched at least 264 attacks in October, the largest number since the UN began tracking incidents in 2006. The repeated attacks have marred this year’s olive harvest.

UN Humanitarian Relief Chief Tom Fletcher warned about Israel’s obligations as the occupying power.

“The failure to prevent or punish such attacks is inconsistent with international law. Palestinians must be protected. Impunity cannot prevail. Perpetrators must be held accountable.”

Israel has controlled the West Bank since capturing the territory from Jordan during the 1967 Six Day War, a conflict that also saw Israel take the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights. Israel annexed East Jerusalem—a move not recognized by most of the international community—while the West Bank has remained under varying forms of Israeli military and civil control ever since.

International Reaffirms Two-State Solution

The 14 signatories reiterated their opposition to any form of annexation and expansion of settlement policies.

“We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace based on the Two-State solution in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions where two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, live side-by-side in peace and security within secure and recognized borders.”

All signatories to the joint statement except Japan have recognized the State of Palestine at various points in 2025.

Israel’s Foreign Minister rejected the statement, asserting Jewish people have the right to establish a national homeland extending over the entire territory of “Mandatory Palestine.”

When the United States stands alone among wealthy democracies in declining to condemn settlement expansion deemed illegal by international law, does American silence signal acquiescence or a fundamental shift in Middle East policy?

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