EU sounds alarm as Israel expands settlements amid deadly Gaza strike
The European Union has condemned Israel's latest decision to allocate significant funding for expanding illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, warning that the move further threatens the viability of a two-state solution.
In a statement, the office of EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas described the decision as a "worrying development" that would deepen settlement entrenchment in sensitive areas, fragment Palestinian communities and increase the risk of human rights violations.
The bloc also rejected Israel's decision to recognize the West Bank settlement of Givat Ze'ev as an official Israeli municipality, reiterating that it does not recognize Israeli sovereignty over territories occupied since 1967.
The EU called on Israel to halt settlement expansion, legalisation of outposts, land confiscations, demolitions, forced evictions and other unilateral measures that undermine prospects for peace.
Palestinians warn of more than 1,000 new settlement units
The Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission said Israel is advancing plans to build 1,024 new settlement units on more than 1,069 dunams (1,264 acres) of occupied Palestinian land in the West Bank.
According to the commission, Israel's Higher Planning Council has discussed nine settlement projects since the beginning of July, with 455 housing units already approved and another 569 moving through planning procedures.
The projects include the expansion of the Mevo Dotan settlement near Jenin, as well as the Beit Hagai and Asael settlements in the Hebron area.
Palestinian officials said the plans form part of a broader strategy to strengthen settlement blocs, expand existing settlements and consolidate what they described as Israel's de facto annexation of occupied Palestinian territory while limiting Palestinian urban development.
The United Nations considers all Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, illegal under international law and has repeatedly warned that continued expansion undermines the two-state solution.
Israeli strike on funeral kills eight in Gaza
Meanwhile, at least eight Palestinians were killed and 20 others injured after an Israeli drone struck a funeral gathering in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al-Awda Hospital.
Witnesses said the drone targeted civilians gathered outside the Ahmad Yassin Mosque as they prepared for the funeral procession of a Palestinian killed earlier the same day.
The Gaza Media Office said the attack raised the death toll from Israeli strikes across the enclave to 25 over the past 72 hours, accusing Israel of targeting markets, funerals, civilian gatherings and residential homes despite the ceasefire.
According to Gaza's Health Ministry, Israeli ceasefire violations have killed more than 1,100 Palestinians and wounded over 3,600 others since the truce took effect in October 2025.
The ministry says Israel's military campaign in Gaza since October 2023 has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, injured over 173,000 and devastated most of the enclave's civilian infrastructure.
Source:AA
