Israel cancels decision to dismantle 3 West Bank settlements

JERUSALEM

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant canceled a decision on Wednesday to dismantle three settlements in the northern occupied West Bank.

He said the move came in line with a bill passed by the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) last year that allowed illegal Israeli settlers to resettle in four outposts evacuated in 2005 under former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s disengagement plan from the Gaza Strip.

"Just as I have done in every position I've held in government, I will continue to foster the settlement of Judea and Samaria [West Bank]," Gallant said in a statement.

Under the disengagement plan, more than 9,000 settlers were removed from 21 illegal settlements in Gaza and the northern West Bank.

The United Nations considers Israeli settlement activity illegal and says it undermines the internationally-agreed two-state solution.

Estimates indicate that about 700,000 illegal settlers are living in 164 settlements and 116 outposts in the occupied West Bank.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar