Hamas frees three Israeli hostages in fifth Gaza exchange

MAALE ADUMIM: Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced work would start on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, a move his office said would “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state.

The Palestinian government, allies, and campaign groups condemned the scheme, calling it illegal and saying the fragmentation of territory would rip up peace plans for the region.

Standing at the site of the planned settlement in Maale Adumim on Thursday, Smotrich, a settler himself, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had agreed to the revival of the E1 development. However, there was no immediate confirmation from either.

“Whoever in the world is trying to recognize a Palestinian state today will receive our answer on the ground, not with documents nor with decisions or statements, but with facts. Facts of houses, facts of neighborhoods,” Smotrich said.

Israel froze construction plans at Maale Adumim in 2012, and again after a revival in 2020, because of objections from the US, European allies, and other powers who considered the project a threat to any future peace deal with the Palestinians.

Restarting the project could further isolate Israel, which has watched some of its Western allies condemn its military offensive in Gaza and announce they may recognize a Palestinian state.

Palestinians fear the settlement building in the West Bank — which has sharply intensified since the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that led to the Gaza war — will rob them of any chance to build a state of their own in the area.

In a statement headlined “Burying the idea of a Palestinian state,” Smotrich’s spokesperson said the minister had approved the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem.

In Maale Adumim, Smotrich said the plan would go into effect on Wednesday.

Breaking the Silence, an Israeli rights group established by former Israeli soldiers, said what it called a land grab “will not only further fragment the Palestinian territory, but will further entrench apartheid.”

Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian president’s spokesperson, called on the US to pressure Israel to stop settlement building.

“The EU rejects any territorial change that is not part of a political agreement between the involved parties. So annexation of territory is illegal under international law,” European Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper said.

Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said the move by Smotrich, an ultra-nationalist in the ruling right-wing coalition who has long advocated for Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, showed that Israel “seeks to appropriate land owned by Palestinians in order to prevent a two-state solution.”

Peace Now, which tracks settlement activity in the West Bank, said there were still steps needed before construction. 

However, if all goes through, infrastructure work could begin within a few months, and house building could start about a year later.

“The E1 plan is deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution. We are standing at the edge of an abyss, and the government is driving us forward at full speed,” Peace Now said in a statement.

Consecutive Israeli governments have initiated, approved, planned, and funded settlements, according to Israeli rights group Yesh Din.

Some settlers moved to the West Bank for religious or ideological reasons, while lower housing costs and government incentives drew others. 

They include American and European dual citizens.

Palestinians were already demoralized by the Israeli military campaign, which has killed more than 61,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, and fear Israel will ultimately push them out of that territory.

About 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. 

Israel annexed East Jerusalem in a move not recognized by most countries, but has not formally extended sovereignty over the West Bank. 

The UN and most world powers say settlement expansion has eroded the viability of a two-state solution by fragmenting Palestinian territory. 

The two-state plan envisages a Palestinian state in East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza, existing side by side with Israel.

Most of the global community considers all settlements illegal under international law.

Israel rejects this interpretation, saying the West Bank is “disputed” rather than “occupied” territory.

Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand imposed sanctions in June on Smotrich and another far-right minister who advocates for settlement expansion, accusing both of them of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. 

ISTANBUL: More than 410,000 Syrians who fled to Turkiye during the rule of Bashar Assad have returned home since he was overthrown in December, the government announced Thursday.

Turkiye’s interior ministry said 411,649 Syrians had so far returned, the rate picking up in recent weeks, with the immigration service recording 140,000 returns since mid-June.

In June Filippo Grandi, head of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), said 600,000 Syrians had returned homme from neighboring countries.

Syria has seen outbreaks of violence in recent weeks, testing the authorities’ ability to contain inter-religious strife after the fall of Assad.

Around 2.5 million Syrian refugees still live in Turkiye, according to the latest figures, released in early August.

In 2021, Turkiye said up to 3.7 million Syrians had taken refuge in the country.