European Parliament rejects debate on Israel's expansion plan in occupied West Bank

STRASBOURG — The group of leftist lawmakers in the European Parliament slammed the body Monday for rejecting their request to debate Israel’s recent expansion of control in the occupied West Bank.”Once again, the Parliament decided to turn a blind eye to violence in Palestine,” the group wrote on the US social media company X’s platform.The group said the request for a debate was opposed by the center-right and far-right coalition in the parliament.Members of the European Parliament are meeting in Strasbourg from Feb. 9-12 for a plenary session to discuss EU-related and international developments.On Sunday, Israel’s security cabinet ordered the repealing of a law barring the sale of Palestinian land to Jews in the West Bank, the unsealing of land ownership records, and transferring building permit authority in a Hebron settlement bloc from the Palestinian municipality to Israel’s civil administration.On Monday, the European Union condemned the new settlement measures approved by the Israeli occupation authorities in the West Bank, stressing that they constitute a “clear violation” of international law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions.“This move is another step in the wrong direction”, EU spokesman for foreign affairs and security policy Anouar El Anouni told reporters, emphasizing that the EU does not recognize Israeli control over the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.The new Israeli measures also expand Israeli oversight and enforcement into areas classified as Area A and Area B, citing alleged violations related to unlicensed construction, water issues and damage to archaeological and environmental sites.The expansion would allow demolitions and seizures of Palestinian property, even in areas under the civil and security administration of the Palestinian Authority.The International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal in a landmark opinion in July 2024 and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.Israel has intensified its military operations in the West Bank since launching its war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, including killings, arrests, forced displacement and settlement expansion, a trajectory Palestinians say is aimed at paving the way for the formal annexation of the occupied territory. — Agencies