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Settlements are here to stay, Netanyahu says in West Bank
Israeli Prime Minister promises never to uproot existing settlements, but judges and opposition politicians boycott his speech
September 27, 2017 22:22
Israeli Prime Minister promises never to uproot existing settlements, but judges and opposition politicians boycott his speech
September 27, 2017 22:22Benjamin Netanyahu repeated his pledge that no more Israeli settlements will be dismantled at a controversial ceremony celebrating 50 years since Israel took control of the West Bank and Gaza.
Israeli settlements are considered illegal by the international community, along with Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights after the Six Day War in 1967.
The government spent 10 million shekels (£2.1 million) to hold the commemoration ceremony in the large settlement bloc of Gush Etzion, south of Jerusalem.
But it was boycotted by opposition political parties, who argued that celebrating settlements in the West Bank is not a matter of Israeli national consensus and state resources should not be spent on the event.
