Peace Now, an anti-settlement watchdog, says Israeli authorities recently approved the seizure of 12.7 square kilometers (4.9 square miles) of land in the occupied West Bank – the largest appropriation in more than three decades, Al Jazeera reported. Since the start of the year, Israel has declared 23.7 square kilometers (9.15 square miles) in the Palestinian territory as state land, it said.

Peace Now, an anti-settlement watchdog, says Israeli authorities recently approved the seizure of 12.7 square kilometers (4.9 square miles) of land in the occupied West Bank – the largest appropriation in more than three decades, Al Jazeera reported. Since the start of the year, Israel has declared 23.7 square kilometers (9.15 square miles) in the Palestinian territory as state land, it said.
“Today, it is clear to everyone that this conflict cannot be resolved without a political settlement that establishes a Palestinian state alongside Israel,” Peace Now said in a statement.
“Still, the Israeli government chooses to actually make it difficult and distance us from the possibility of peace and stopping the bloodshed.”
Rights groups say the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank is aimed at reshaping the demography of the territory earmarked for a future Palestinian state.