Israel’s decision to grab nearly 1,000 acres of Palestinian land to build settlements was condemned by David Cameron yesterday as ‘utterly deplorable’.

Israel announced on Sunday that an area of the West Bank, near existing settlements at Etzion, south of Bethlehem, has been designated as ‘state land’ which means it can be used for homes for Israelis.

The move came days after an indefinite ceasefire brought an end to weeks of conflict in Gaza during which more than 2,100 Palestinians and 73 Israelis were killed.

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Condemned: David Cameron used unusually strong language to condemn Israel's land grab

The existing settlement of Gevaot in the Gush Etzion settlement bloc near Bethlehem. The 1,000 acres of Palestinian land which is being seized is also near the city

Israel has been criticised for its move to seize 1,000 acres of Palestinian land. It is expected to be used to extend settlements close to the existing Gush Etzion settlement bloc (above) near Bethlehem

Israel's land grab will extend existing settlements around Bethlehem, which is already host to the Gaveot settlement (above). Like most West Bank settlements it is heavily guarded with a perimeter fence

Land grab: Israeli soldiers swooped on 1,000 acres of Palestinian territory yesterday, sending a shock wave of anger across the Arab world (stock image)

Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of building obstacles to the creation of a Palestinian state and a lasting peace.

Mr Cameron, addressing MPs on the summer crises in Iraq, Russia and Gaza, used unusually strong language to condemn the move.

He said that while Israel had a right to defend its civilians against the ‘terrorist tactics’ of Hamas, this did not mean supporting all the Israeli government’s decisions.

‘The appropriation of nearly 1,000 acres of land in the West Bank near Bethlehem is utterly deplorable,’ he said.

‘Settlements are illegal under international law and will do nothing to create the kind of peace process we all want, and we urge the Israeli government to reverse this decision.’

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said it was ‘a particularly ill-judged decision that comes at a time when the priority must be to build on the ceasefire in Gaza.’

The US also criticised the move, calling it ‘counterproductive to Israel’s stated goal of a negotiated two-state solution with the Palestinians’.

Protest: Israel's actions in the West Bank have led to large-scale protests by Palestinians, like this last week

Tensions: Recent tensions have culminated in a series of heated clashes between Palestinian youths and Israeli soldiers, who remain in the occupied territory

Mr Cameron has faced criticism over his response to the crisis, in which he has staunchly backed Israel’s right to defend itself in the face of constant rocket attacks from Hamas.

But he has long criticised the illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, where around half a million Israelis live. Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan during the Six Day War in 1967.

Israel Radio said the step was taken in response to the kidnapping and killing of three Jewish teens by Hamas militants in the area in June.

Tensions stoked by the incident quickly spread to Israel's border with Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, and the two sides engaged in a seven-week war that ended on Tuesday with an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire.



- U.S. State Department official This announcement, like every other settlement announcement Israel makes, planning step they approve and construction tender they issue, is counterproductive to Israel's stated goal of a negotiated two-state solution with the Palestinian

The notice published on Sunday by the Israeli military gave no reason for the land appropriation decision.

Peace Now, which opposes Israeli settlement activities in the West Bank, territory the Palestinians seek for a state, said the appropriation was meant to turn a site where 10 families now live adjacent to a Jewish seminary into a permanent settlement.

Construction of a major settlement at the location, known as 'Gevaot', has been mooted by Israel since 2000. Last year, the government invited bids for the building of 1,000 housing units at the site.

Peace Now said the land seizure was the largest announced by Israel in the West Bank since the 1980s and that anyone with ownership claims had 45 days to appeal. A local Palestinian mayor said Palestinians owned the tracts and harvested olive trees on them.

Israel has come under intense international criticism over its settlement activities, which most countries regard as illegal under international law and a major obstacle to the creation of a viable Palestinian state in any future peace deal.

Nabil Abu Rdainah, a spokesman for Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, called on Israel to cancel the appropriation. 'This decision will lead to more instability. This will only inflame the situation after the war in Gaza,' Abu Rdainah said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu broke off U.S.-brokered peace talks with Abbas in April after the Palestinian leader reached a reconciliation deal with Hamas, the Islamist movement that dominates the Gaza Strip.

In a series of remarks after an open-ended ceasefire halted the Gaza war, Netanyahu repeated his position that Abbas would have to sever his alliance with Hamas for a peace process with Israel to resume.

Unstable: A spokesman for Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (pictured), called on Israel to cancel the appropriation, saying it would lead to 'more instability' and inflame the war

At odds: President Barack Obama has been at odds with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu over settlements since taking office in 2009. This was the latest point of contention between Washington and its top Middle East ally Israel, which also differ over Iran nuclear talks

The administration of President Barack Obama, who has been at odds with Netanyahu over settlements since taking office in 2009, pushed back against the land decision. It was the latest point of contention between Washington and its top Middle East ally Israel, which also differ over Iran nuclear talks.

'We have long made clear our opposition to continued settlement activity,' said the State Department official, who declined to be identified.

'This announcement, like every other settlement announcement Israel makes, planning step they approve and construction tender they issue, is counterproductive to Israel's stated goal of a negotiated two-state solution with the Palestinians,' the official said.

After the collapse of the last round of U.S.-brokered peace talks, U.S. officials cited settlement construction as one of the main reasons for the breakdown, while also faulting the Palestinians for signing a series of international treaties and conventions.

Israel has said construction at Gevaot would not constitute the establishment of a new settlement because the site is officially designated a neighbourhood of an existing one, Alon Shvut, several km (miles) down the road.