A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated [press briefing] Tuesday that the latest Israeli settlement plans creates an obstacle to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, which is a “great concern to the Secretary-General.” Israel plans [Al Jazeera article] to build 2,500 new settlement homes in West Bank. Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric reiterated a statement that she had made [press briefing] the previous day that “for the General-Secretary, it’s very clear that there is no Plan B for a two-state solution. There’s a need for both parties to engage in bona fide and sustainable negotiations to reach the goal of a two-state solution.” The settlements by Israel are considered by the UN to be “unilateral actions.” Any unilateral actions are considered to be obstacles to the creation of a two-state solution. The UN previously adopted [UN resolution] a resolution in December 2016 that condemns Israeli settlement activities in Palestine.

Recent conflicts between Israel and Palestine [HRW backgrounder] over settlements in the occupied West Bank have raised concerns over possible human rights violations. The UN rights chief stated [JURIST report] in December 2016 that the Israeli settlement legislation violated international law. In November 2016, the Israel High Court of Justice (HCJ) [official website] ruled that the controversial Amona settlement in the West Bank must be dismantled [JURIST report] by December 25. Earlier the same month Israel’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation unanimously approved [JURIST report] the Formalization Bill to legalize the West Bank outposts, which was intended in part to stop the evacuation of Amona outpost.