“Foreign governments will not restrict the right of Jews to live in the land of Israel, and any such call is morally wrong and discriminatory against Jews,” Saar said.
Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded on Wednesday to condemnation by several Western countries of the West Bank settlement program, saying that “foreign governments will not restrict the right of Jews to live in the land of Israeland any such call is morally wrong and discriminatory against Jews.”
“Israel strongly rejects the statements of foreign countries regarding the cabinet decision on settlements in Judea and Samaria“, Saar said in a statement.
Israeli flags fly at the entrance to Eviatar, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, November 30, 2025. (Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun)
Saar assured that the decision to create 11 new settlements and formalize eight more, which was considered illegal, is aimed at eliminating several security threats. He also said that all the settlements are in Zone C and “located on government land.”
Sa'ar also referred to international law, the Balfour Declaration of 1917 and the San Remo Conference of 1920, which established that “the right of the Jewish people to establish their national home extends to the entire territory of Mandatory Palestine.” These rights were preserved in Article 80 of the Charter of the United Nations.”
“In the above statement, the blatant silence of foreign states regarding the Palestinian Authority's illegal construction in Area C is extremely striking,” he concluded.
UK, Canada and Germany urge Israel to approve settlement
Saar's statement followed condemnation from the UK, Canada and Germany, among others: from approval by the Security Cabinet of 19 new settlements in the West Bank.
“We call on Israel to reverse this decision and also to expand the settlements,” said a joint statement issued by Britain, which also included Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway and Spain.
“We remind you that such unilateral actions, as part of the broader intensification of settlement policies in the West Bank, not only violate international law, but also risk fueling instability,” the statement added.
Reuters contributed to this report.
