UN condemns Israeli settlements

The statement was reportedly downgraded from a legally binding resolution due to pressure by US officials

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has issued a statement denouncing Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, deeming them a major obstacle to peace in the region. While a separate resolution would have called for an immediate end to all settlement activity, it was successfully thwarted by American negotiators, according to multiple outlets. 

The Security Council expressed “deep concern and dismay” over the further expansion of settlement outposts on Monday, citing recently announced plans by the Israeli government to legally authorize nine existing settlements in the West Bank.

The UNSC “strongly opposes all unilateral measures that impede peace,” including the “construction and expansion of settlements, confiscation of Palestinians’ land, the ‘legalization’ of settlement outposts, demolition of Palestinians homes and displacement of Palestinian civilians,” it said, adding that ongoing settlement activity is “dangerously imperiling the viability of the two-state solution.”