Hamas warns Israeli settlement expansion threatens Palestinian existence

Hamas has strongly condemned new Israeli government decisions to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, warning the measures pose an “existential threat” to Palestinians and are designed to consolidate Israeli control over the territory.

In a statement issued on Sunday, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said decisions approved by Israel’s security cabinet confirm what he described as a colonial strategy aimed at “swallowing all Palestinian land and displacing its original inhabitants.”

Qassem said Israel’s far-right government is seeking to broaden what he called a war of annihilation, with the goal of eliminating the Palestinian presence across all Palestinian geography. He added that the developments require practical Palestinian unity and a coordinated national response to confront Israel’s policies.

Earlier on Sunday, Israel approved a series of measures altering the legal and civil framework governing the occupied West Bank, significantly expanding Israeli authority in the territory.

According to Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, the decisions include repealing a Jordanian-era law that prohibited the sale of Palestinian land to Jews, unsealing land ownership records, and transferring authority over building permits in a settlement bloc near Hebron from the Palestinian municipality to Israel’s Civil Administration.

The measures also extend Israeli enforcement powers into areas classified as Area A and Area B, citing alleged violations related to unlicensed construction, water use, and damage to archaeological and environmental sites. The expansion would allow Israeli authorities to carry out demolitions and property seizures even in areas under Palestinian civil administration.

Under the 1993 Oslo II Accords, Area A is under full Palestinian civil and security control, Area B under Palestinian civil control with Israeli security oversight, while Area C, which makes up about 60 percent of the West Bank, remains under full Israeli control.

Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported that part of the cabinet’s decision transfers planning and construction authority at the Ibrahimi Mosque and surrounding areas, along with other religious sites, from the Hebron municipality to Israel’s Civil Administration. The move runs counter to arrangements set out in the 1997 Hebron Protocol signed between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization.

Israeli authorities have continued to demolish Palestinian homes and structures across the West Bank, citing a lack of permits. Palestinians argue that Israel’s restrictive planning regime makes it nearly impossible to obtain building approvals.

According to figures from the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, Israel carried out 538 demolitions in 2025, affecting around 1,400 homes and structures, the highest annual total recorded.

The United Nations has long maintained that Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory are illegal under international law and undermine the viability of a two-state solution, repeatedly calling for a halt to settlement activity.

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