Israeli Settlements "Illegitimate," Biden Gov’t Says

The Biden administration has restored a US legal finding dating back nearly 50 years that Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are “illegitimate” under international law, Matthew Lee reported for the Associated Press (AP).

The US believes settlements are inconsistent with Israel’s obligations. I Photo: Justin McIntosh Wikimedia Commons

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US believes settlements are inconsistent with Israel’s obligations, reversing a determination made by his predecessor, Mike Pompeo, in the Biden administration’s latest shift away from the pro-Israel policies pursued by former President Donald Trump.

Blinken’s comments came in response to a reporter’s question about an announcement that Israel would build more than 3,300 new homes in West Bank settlements as a riposte to a fatal Palestinian shooting attack.

It wasn’t clear why Blinken chose this moment, more than three years into his tenure, to reverse Pompeo’s decision.

But it came at a time of growing US-Israeli tensions over the war in Gaza, with the latest settlement announcement only adding to the strain. It also came as the United Nations’ highest court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), is holding hearings into the legality of the Israeli occupation.

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