Israeli settlement building ‘ethnic cleansing’: Hamas

By Nour Abu Eisha

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Saturday termed Israeli plans to advance thousands of new settlement units in the occupied West Bank as “ethnic cleansing”.

On Friday, the Israeli Ministry of Defense unveiled plans to build nearly 4,000 settlement homes in the West Bank.

In a statement, Hamas labelled the Israeli settlement building as a “dangerous escalation” and a “crime of ethnic cleansing” against Palestinians.

It warned that the settlement construction and forced displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank “will not give the occupation an illusory legitimacy, and will be met with more steadfastness and comprehensive confrontation."

The Palestinian group called on the international community to stand by the Palestinian cause and end the Israeli occupation as it “poses a threat to the region and threatens international peace and security."

The Israeli settlement plans have already drawn fire from Washington, which warned that the measure “deeply damages the prospects for a two-state solution.”

* Writing by Ibrahim Mukhtar