Share this @internewscast.com
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks to journalists during a press conference about new settlement construction in the Israel-occupied West Bank near Maale Adumim, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
MAALE ADUMIM – Israel’s far-right finance minister announced a contentious new settlement construction in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Thursday which Palestinians and rights groups worry will scuttle plans for a future Palestinian state by effectively cutting the West Bank into two separate parts.
The announcement comes as many countries said they would recognize a Palestinian state in September.
“This reality finally buries the idea of a Palestinian state, because there is nothing to recognize and no one to recognize,” said Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. “Anyone in the world who tries today to recognize a Palestinian state – will receive an answer from us on the ground,” he said.
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
