Israel's government has approved 22 new Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, a move that could deepen divisions with some allies who have threatened sanctions over such moves.
The far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalal Smotrich, advocating for Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, wrote on X that the settlements would be in the northern West Bank, without specifying where.
Israeli media cited the Defence Ministry as saying that among the new settlements, existing "outposts" would be legalised and new settlements would also be built.
A spokesperson for Defence Minister Israel Katz has not commented on the announcement.
In a statement on Telegram, the Likud party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the move a "once-in-a-generation decision", saying the initiative had been led by Smotrich and Mr Katz and approved by the security cabinet.
"The decision also includes the establishment of four communities along the eastern border with Jordan, as part of strengthening Israel's eastern backbone, national security and strategic grip on the area," it said.
The Western-backed Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited rule in the West Bank, and the largely Gaza-based Islamist militant group Hamas condemned the Israeli decision.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said it was a "dangerous escalation", accusing Israel of continuing to drag the region into a "cycle of violence and instability".
"This extremist Israeli government is trying by all means to prevent the establishment of an independent Palestinian state," he told Reuters, urging US President Donald Trump's administration to intervene.
Palestinians regard the expansion of settlements as a hindrance to their aspirations to create an independent state in Gaza and West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.
There is a growing list of European countries demanding that Israel end the war in Gaza, while Britain, France and Canada this month warned Israel they could impose targeted sanctions if Israel continued to broaden settlement in the West Bank.
The UK's Minister for the Middle East, Hamish Falconer, condemned Israel's approval of new settlements, calling it a "deliberate obstacle to Palestinian statehood".
"Settlements are illegal under international law, further imperil the two-state solution, and do not protect Israel," Mr Falconer wrote on X.
Most of the international community considers the settlements illegal.
The Israeli government deems settlements legal under its own laws, while some so-called "outposts" are illegal, but often tolerated and sometimes later legalised.
B'Tselem, a leading Israeli human rights organisation, accused the right-wing government of advancing "Jewish supremacy through the theft of Palestinian land and the ethnic cleansing of the West Bank."
In a statement, B'Tselem also criticised the international community for "enabling Israel’s crimes."
The decision was praised by Yisrael Ganz, chairman of the Yesha Council, which represents Jewish settlements and has close ties with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mr Ganz said the move countered the Palestinian Authority's bid to establish a state.
"This historic decision sends a clear message - we are here not only to stay but to establish the State of Israel here for all its residents and to strengthen its security," he said.
Around 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, territories Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 war.
Israel later annexed East Jerusalem, a move not recognised by most countries, but has not formally extended sovereignty over the West Bank.
Settlement activity in the West Bank has accelerated sharply since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, now in its 20th month.
Israel has also stepped up military operations against Palestinian militants in the West Bank and settler attacks on Palestinian residents have increased.
Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said that the latest move from the Israeli government was part of "the war led by Netanyahu against the Palestinian people".
He urged the US and EU to respond to Israel's announcement by taking action.
Human rights groups and anti-settlement NGOs say a slide towards at least de facto annexation of the occupied West Bank has gathered pace, particularly since the start of the Gaza war.
"The Israeli government no longer pretends otherwise: the annexation of the occupied territories and expansion of settlements is its central goal," the Peace Now group said in a statement, adding the move "will dramatically reshape the West Bank and further entrench the occupation".
