TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s far-right finance minister says the Cabinet has approved 19 new Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. The decision announced Sunday is part of a broader push by the government to expand settlements, which threatens the possibility of a Palestinian state. The Peace Now anti-settlement group says the approval increases the number of settlements in the West Bank by nearly 50% during the current government’s tenure. Settlements are widely considered illegal under international law. The decision comes as the U.S. is pushing Israel and Hamas to advance a Gaza ceasefire plan that includes a possible pathway to a Palestinian state.
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