JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli government has approved plans to build about 5,300 new homes in settlements in the occupied West Bank, a monitoring group said Thursday, the latest in a campaign to accelerate settlement expansion aimed at strengthening Israeli control over the territory and blocking the establishment of a future Palestinian state.
News of the decision came as diplomatic efforts were winding down. Nine months of war Gaza peace talks appear to be back on track after a weeks-long hiatus, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announcing his decision to send negotiators to restart talks, a day after the militant group Hamas submitted its latest response to a U.S.-backed peace plan to mediators.
Fighting has intensified between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, with militants saying they fired more than 1,000 artillery shells on Thursday. 200 rockets and exploding drones Going to Northern Israel for Revenge Killing a senior commander The Israeli airstrikes the previous day.
The months of correspondence literally Burned down the Israeli-Lebanese border and stoked fear There is also the possibility of an even more devastating war in the Middle East. Hezbollah If there was a ceasefire, the attacks would stop. The conflict is between Israel and its ally Hamas, which is also backed by Iran.
Israel’s rapid settlement construction push risks further escalating tensions in the West Bank, where violence has soared since the war in Gaza began on October 7.
Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now said the government’s High Planning Council has approved or advanced plans to build 5,295 homes in dozens of settlements in the West Bank. The council also “legalized” three informal settlements as new districts in existing settlements in the Jordan Valley and near the city of Hebron.
On Wednesday, Peace Now said Israel had acknowledged Largest land seizure in the West Bank COGAT, the Israeli defense agency that oversees the planning council, referred questions to Netanyahu’s office, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Netanyahu’s government is dominated by settlers and their supporters. The hard-line nationalist finance minister, Bazarel Smotrich, himself a settler, was appointed head of settlement policy and has said the policy of rapid expansion is also intended to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state. In the escalation over the past few months, the settlers Over 1,000 attacks against PalestiniansThey caused deaths, destroyed property, and in some cases caused Palestinians to flee villages.
Palestinians want the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war, for the establishment of an independent state.
Approval of new housing construction could also anger Israel’s ally, the United States, which opposes settlements but has done little to pressure Israel on the issue.
The Gaza Health Ministry said on Thursday that the number of Palestinians killed in Israeli operations in Gaza had surpassed 38,000. The ministry did not distinguish between combatants and civilians. The war began when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel on October 7 that left about 1,200 people dead. 250 more kidnapped.
The resumption of ceasefire talks is seen as a new attempt by mediators from the United States, Qatar and Egypt to overcome rifts that have repeatedly thwarted an agreement over the past few months. Hamas wants a deal that guarantees a full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza and an end to the war. Netanyahu has said the war cannot end until Hamas is removed.
Israeli negotiators are due to arrive in the Qatari capital, Doha, as early as Friday for talks with US, Egyptian and Qatari officials.
A senior Biden administration official said the White House viewed the resumption of negotiations as a “breakthrough” that “moves the process forward,” but warned that much more remains to be done.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Joe Biden early Thursday morning. According to Netanyahu’s office, Netanyahu told Biden that Israel would “only end the war after it has achieved all of its war objectives,” meaning the two aims of rescuing the hostages and destroying Hamas.
An administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the 30-minute call, said Biden made it clear to Netanyahu that “the time has come to close the deal.”
America The plan garnered worldwide support They called for a gradual ceasefire in Gaza and demanded the release of all hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
So far, neither side seems to have fully embraced that.
Last month, Hamas proposed “revisions” to the proposal, but the United States said some parts were unworkable. Negotiations stalled. After the United States presented the new plan, Hamas said on Wednesday it had sent a new response to Egypt and Qatar. Hamas political official Bassem Naim said Hamas “responded with some ideas to bridge the gap between the two sides,” but did not provide details.
on the other hand, Prime Minister Netanyahu has expressed conflicting positions — He said Israel is committed to the proposals put forward by Biden. In a speech on May 31But in a television interview last month, he They will make a “partial agreement” and continue the war. “After a moment of silence.”
The U.S. proposal essentially calls for a three-stage process.
The first phase would see a ceasefire, Israeli forces withdraw from densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners would be released in exchange for the release of many hostages, including women, the elderly and the injured. A November ceasefire saw the release of some of the hostages, but militants still hold around 80 hostages and 40 bodies.
During the first 42-day period, the parties will negotiate the terms of the second phase.
The negotiations aim to result in a “sustainable peace” and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, with Hamas releasing all remaining male hostages in exchange for Israel releasing Palestinian prisoners. A third phase would see the return of the hostages’ bodies.
The transition from the first to the second stage is Main issues.
Hamas fears that Israel will resume the war after the first phase after making unrealistic demands in the negotiations. Israeli officials have said they hope the talks will lead to the elimination of Hamas’ power in Gaza, but this is not specified in the proposal. They also call for a deadline for the talks to keep up pressure on Hamas and not prolong the negotiations and the initial ceasefire.
A U.S. official suggested Hamas had changed its position to seek guarantees of a permanent ceasefire to kick off a three-phase agreement, and Hamas’ response showed it “has a proper understanding of what needs to happen” to move from phase one to phase two, the official said.
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Chehaieb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut and Ammar Madani in Washington contributed to this report.
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Click here for AP’s coverage of the Gaza war https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
