Canada Urges Israel to Reverse Decision to Approve New West Bank Settlements

This picture taken  on June 28, 2024 , shows a view of construction cranes at Ramat Shlomo, a Jewish settlement in the Israeli-annexed eastern sector of Jerusalem. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
This picture taken on June 28, 2024 , shows a view of construction cranes at Ramat Shlomo, a Jewish settlement in the Israeli-annexed eastern sector of Jerusalem. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
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Canada Urges Israel to Reverse Decision to Approve New West Bank Settlements

This picture taken  on June 28, 2024 , shows a view of construction cranes at Ramat Shlomo, a Jewish settlement in the Israeli-annexed eastern sector of Jerusalem. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
This picture taken on June 28, 2024 , shows a view of construction cranes at Ramat Shlomo, a Jewish settlement in the Israeli-annexed eastern sector of Jerusalem. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

Canada on Monday urged the Israeli government to reverse a decision to approve new settlement outposts in the West Bank, saying the move was in contravention of international law.

"Canada firmly opposes the government of Israel’s decision to approve new settlements in the West Bank. Unilateral actions, such as financially weakening the Palestinian Authority and expanding settlements is in contravention of international law," the Canadian foreign ministry said in a statement on social media X.

Israel has approved the largest seizure of land in the occupied West Bank in over three decades and advanced plans to build thousands of new settlement homes, according to Peace Now, an Israeli anti-settlement monitoring group. They are the latest steps by Israel’s hard-line government meant to cement Israel’s control over the territory and prevent the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

The international community considers the settlements illegal or illegitimate, and the Palestinians say they are the main barrier to a lasting peace agreement.
But with more than 500,000 Israeli settlers living in the West Bank, it will be difficult – some say impossible – to partition the territory as part of a two-state solution.



Israeli Undercover Force Detains Senior Gaza Health Official, Ministry Says

Marwan Al-Hams, a senior Gaza Health Ministry official, speaks at his office in Gaza, in this screen grab taken from a video shot on October 21, 2024. REUTERS
Marwan Al-Hams, a senior Gaza Health Ministry official, speaks at his office in Gaza, in this screen grab taken from a video shot on October 21, 2024. REUTERS
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Israeli Undercover Force Detains Senior Gaza Health Official, Ministry Says

Marwan Al-Hams, a senior Gaza Health Ministry official, speaks at his office in Gaza, in this screen grab taken from a video shot on October 21, 2024. REUTERS
Marwan Al-Hams, a senior Gaza Health Ministry official, speaks at his office in Gaza, in this screen grab taken from a video shot on October 21, 2024. REUTERS

An Israeli undercover force detained Marwan Al-Hams, a senior Gaza Health Ministry official, outside the field hospital of the International Committee of the Red Cross in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday, the health ministry said.

Hams, in charge of field hospitals in the enclave, was on his way to visit the ICRC field hospital in northern Rafah when an Israeli force "abducted" him after opening fire, killing one person and wounding another civilian nearby, according to the ministry, Reuters reported.

Medics said the person killed was a local journalist who was filming an interview with Hams when the incident happened.

Israel has raided and attacked hospitals across the Gaza Strip during the 21-month war in Gaza, accusing Hamas of using them for military purposes, an accusation the group denies. But sending undercover forces to carry out arrests has been rare.