The Israeli Higher Planning Council is set to discuss tomorrow plans to build 1,276 settlement units across the occupied West Bank.

The Israeli movement Peace Now, which specializes in monitoring settlement activities, pointed out that the occupation government recently approved the deposit of the plan for the “Asael” settlement, also located in the South Hebron Hills. This move signals an attempt to legitimize two of the ten settlements that were approved in February 2023.

In recent years, settlement expansion has accelerated, particularly during the tenure of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with the aim of imposing a new reality paving the way for the annexation of the West Bank and reinforcing so-called “Israeli sovereignty” over it.