Israel’s security cabinet approved the establishment of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, a move the country’s far-right finance minister said on Sunday was aimed at preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The decision brings the total number of settlements approved over the past three years to 69, according to a statement from the office of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
The latest approvals come days after the United Nations said the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank – all of which are considered illegal under international law – had reached its highest level since at least 2017.
Meanwhile, in Gaza three Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces, according to medical sources.
Two civilians were killed in drone fire near a fuel station in the Shujaiya neighbourhood of Gaza City, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa.
A third died when a drone dropped an explosive device in the same area, the agency said.
An Al Jazeera correspondent reported renewed Israeli shelling and helicopter fire east of Khan Younis.
This came hours after the US, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey called on Israel and Hamas to stick to the ceasefire agreement and show restraint following talks in Florida on Friday.
“We reaffirm our full commitment to the entirety of the President’s 20-point peace plan and call on all parties to uphold their obligations, exercise restraint, and cooperate with monitoring arrangements,” the countries said in a joint statement posted on X by Witkoff.
Israel has violated the ceasefire on almost a daily basis since it came into force on 10 October, killing more than 400 Palestinians and injuring 1,108 others, according to the local health ministry.