Jerusalem [Israel], February 18: Israel has issued a tender for the construction of nearly 1,000 additional settler homes in the occupied West Bank, an Israeli NGO has reported.
Referencing the document, the Peace Now watchdog said on Sunday that the development of 974 new housing units is planned at the Efrat settlement near Jerusalem.
Settlement in the West Bank is being pushed by Israeli hardliners and backed by the Israeli government but is viewed as a major obstacle to peace by Palestinians and by many internationally.
The project would expand the population of the Efrat settlement, located about 12km (7.5 miles) southwest of Jerusalem, by around 40 percent and further block the development of the nearby Palestinian city of Bethlehem, Peace Now said.
Hagit Ofran, who leads the group's settlement monitoring, said construction may begin after the contracting process and issuing of permits, which could take another year at least.
Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. The settlements are illegal under international law.
However, United States President Donald Trump gave unprecedented support to Israeli settlements during his first term, including the Givat Hamatos settlement expansion, which divided parts of Jerusalem claimed by Palestinians.
Trump is a Republican, but Israel has also steadily expanded settlements during Democratic administrations, which were more critical but rarely took any action to curb them.
In a statement on Monday, Israeli rights group Ir Amim said Trump's inauguration on January 20 has ushered in a wave of settlement expansion.
"In parallel, the Israeli government has intensified its campaign of Palestinian displacement," Ir Amim researcher Aviv Tatarsky said in a statement.
"Since the start of 2025, Israeli authorities have demolished 27 structures in East Jerusalem, including 18 residential units, in what appears to be a systematic effort to remove Palestinians from their homes while simultaneously expanding Israeli settlements."
Israel has built well over 100 settlements across the West Bank, ranging from hilltop outposts to fully developed communities that resemble small towns and suburbs with apartment blocks, malls and parks.
More than 500,000 settlers live in the occupied West Bank, which is home to about three million Palestinians.
The settlers have Israeli citizenship while Palestinians live under military rule with the Palestinian Authority administering population centres.
Major human rights groups have described the situation as apartheid, an allegation rejected by the Israeli government, which views the West Bank as the historical and biblical heartland of the Jewish people and is opposed to Palestinian statehood.
Settler attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank have surged since the start of the Gaza war on October 7, 2023, with an average of four incidents of settler violence occurring daily. (Agencies)
Source: Qatar Tribune
