Israeli settlement activities continued in defiance of UN resolution

United Nations, Dec 19 (IANS) Israel continued settlement construction in the occupied Palestinian territory in 2017 in violation of a Security Council resolution passed almost a year ago, Nikolay Mladenov, the UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, said on Monday.

Significantly more housing units were advanced and approved in 2017, Xinhua quoted Mladenov as saying.

In Area C of the West Bank, the number of units advanced and approved more than doubled from 3,000 in 2016 to nearly 7,000 in 2017. In East Jerusalem, the increase has similarly been from 1,600 in 2016 to some 3,100 in 2017, he said.

The activities contravened Security Council Resolution 2334, which demands Israel "immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem."

No such steps have been taken by the Israeli side during the reporting period from September 20 to December 18, said Mladenov, updating the Security Council on the implementation of the resolution.

"Let me reiterate that the United Nations considers all settlement activities to be illegal under international law and a major obstacle to peace," he said.

2017 has also seen worrying legislative, judicial and administrative initiatives in Israel that aim to change the long-standing Israeli policy concerning the legal status of the West Bank and the use of private Palestinian land, he said.

"Settlement-related activities undermine the chances for the establishment of a viable, contiguous Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution," said Mladenov.

He observed that continuing violence against civilians and incitement perpetuated mutual fear and suspicion.