US says Israel's new settlements in West Bank are 'inconsistent' with international law
World
Antony Blinken said settlement were counterproductive to reaching an enduring peace
(Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday said Israel's expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank is inconsistent with international law, signaling a return to long-standing U.S. policy on the issue that had been reversed by the previous administration of Donald Trump.
Speaking at a news conference during a trip to Buenos Aires, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was "disappointed" in Israel's announcement of plans for building new housing in the occupied West Bank, saying they were counterproductive to reaching an enduring peace.
"They're also inconsistent with international law. Our administration maintains a firm opposition to settlement expansion, and in our judgment this only weakens, doesn't strengthen, Israel's security," Blinken said.
In November 2019, Trump's Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that Washington no longer viewed Israel's settlements on West Bank land it captured in the 1967 Middle East war as "inconsistent with international law," a reversal of four decades of U.S. policy.
Months later in January 2020, the Trump administration announced a peace plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which was embraced by Israel and rejected by the Palestinians, partly because it awarded Israel most of what it has sought during decades of conflict, including nearly all the occupied land on which it has built settlements.
The administration of President Joe Biden has opposed further expansion of settlements, saying it was counterproductive to lasting peace, but Friday was the first time a U.S. official said the practice was inconsistent with international law.
The administration has recently imposed sanctions on four Israeli men accused of being involved in settler violence.
Most countries regard the settlements, which in many areas cut Palestinian communities off from each other, as a violation of international law. Israel claims a biblical birthright to the land.
Palestinians and the international community view the transfer of any country's civilians to occupied land as illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and U.N. Security Council resolutions.
