'Burying the idea of Palestinian state': Israeli minister approves settlement in East Jerusalem
It was not immediately clear if prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu backed the plan to revive the long-frozen E1 scheme, which Palestinians and world powers have said would lop the West Bank in two and will likely draw international ire.
Advertisement
In a statement headlined "Burying the idea of a Palestinian state," Smotrich's spokesperson said the minister would give a press conference later on Thursday about the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Israel had frozen construction plans there since 2012 because of objections from the United States, European allies and other world powers who considered the project a threat to any future peace deal with the Palestinians.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
Far-right Israeli minister taunts jailed Palestinian leader in prison visit
Israel's national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has posted video footage in which he is seen taunting the imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti in jail, prompting strong condemnation from Barghouti's family and Palestinian leaders. The 13-second clip shows Ben-Gvir, a far-right politician on whom the UK and several other countries imposed sanctions this year for incitement to violence against Palestinians, making threatening remarks to Barghouti while Israel's prisons minister, Kobi Yaakobi, an ally of Ben-Gvir stands nearby. Barghouti, 66, who was jailed by an Israeli court in 2002 for his role in planning several killings during the second Intifada, appears gaunt after being held in solitary confinement for years. He is detained in Ganot prison, in central Israel, and is almost unrecognisable. Ben-Gvir's visit had been described as being part of the pursuit of a policy of stricter conditions for Palestinian prisoners, but the emergence of the video suggests the footage may have been its primary purpose. 'You won't win. Whoever messes with the nation of Israel, whoever murders our children and women, we will wipe them out,' he says. 'You should know this, [this happened] throughout history.' Ben-Gvir, the leader of the far-right Jewish Power party, said this year that 'there is no reason for a gram of food or aid to enter Gaza'. He serves as the national security minister despite a conviction in 2007 for incitement to racism and supporting a terrorist organisation. Barghouti, who is sometimes compared to Nelson Mandela, is a senior figure in Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement and is hugely popular in in the West Bank and Gaza. He is seen as one of the few figures who could meaningfully reconcile rival Palestinian factions. Palestinians have long sought his release, reportedly including him in recent hostage negotiations, but Israel has refused. The footage of Barghouti shows the first images of him in a decade. The organisation that represents Palestinian prisoners has alleged that Israeli prison officers have assaulted him; a claim Israel has denied. In the video, Barghouti, who is standing in a white T-shirt, tries to speak, but Ben-Gvir interjects and the short clip ends. The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned the incident, describing Ben-Gvir's actions as 'organised state terrorism'. The Palestinian Authority vice-president, Hussein al-Sheikh, described it as 'the epitome of psychological, moral and physical terrorism'. The emergence of the footage follows similar grandstanding this week by Ben-Gvir's fellow far-right minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who said he would 'bury' the idea of Palestinian statehood after announcing a huge new illegal settlement construction.
Auto Blog
9 hours ago
- Auto Blog
McLaren to Auction 2026 F1 Car at Abu Dhabi GP — Before It Races
In a motorsport first, McLaren will auction its yet-to-be-raced 2026 Formula 1 car during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend on December 5, alongside its upcoming IndyCar entry and 2027 WEC hypercar. The winning bidder will not only get their car — but also they will get VIP paddock access, behind-the-scenes involvement in development, and a leased 2025 display car to show off until the real thing arrives in 2028. McLaren is approaching this event as if it were its own personal Monterey Car Week — a stage for prestige, spectacle, and the kind of high-profile moments that cement a brand's legacy. It recalls the time a McLaren F1, once owned by tech titan Larry Ellison, dominated headlines. That was a celebration of the past, a moment steeped in nostalgia and reverence for an icon. This, however, is something different. A Radical Play in a Year of Radical Changes The 2026 McLaren — likely to be badged MCL40 — will be the team's first chassis built to the FIA's sweeping new regulations, bringing active aerodynamics, revised hybrid power units, and tighter energy deployment rules. In other words, it's an entirely different beast from today's car. While collectors usually wait decades for such machines to hit auction, McLaren is making its future hardware available now. It's part marketing move, part funding strategy — the same kind of brand-savvy play that sees McLaren Special Operations eyeing wild ideas like the possible comeback of the McLaren 12C to re-engage loyalists. Source: RM Sotheby's The Company McLaren Keeps at Auction This won't be a lone star under the gavel. RM Sotheby's will also showcase McLaren's 2026 IndyCar, its Le Mans-bound hypercar, and several road-going unicorns. It's the sort of ultra-exclusive catalogue where you'd also find things like the McLaren Speedtail with $250K in bespoke upgrades that stunned bidders earlier this month. Some might think McLaren's racing program and its exclusive road cars are separate worlds, but they're anything but. The link is intentional — every victory on the track fuels the mystique in the showroom. McLaren are selling an identity, a chance to wear the same badge as the cars that chase glory at 200 miles an hour. Why It Matters for Fans and Collectors For well-heeled collectors, this is the equivalent of buying the Mona Lisa while da Vinci's still mixing the paint. The winning bidder becomes part of the car's story from day one, gaining insights into how the team works, how the car evolves, and potentially watching it win — or lose — in real time. It's a shrewd way to bind a collector's ego to McLaren's competitive fortunes, and it might set a precedent. If the sale smashes estimates, expect other teams to follow. Just don't expect Ferrari to sell you next year's SF-26 before Charles Leclerc's even put his helmet on. About the Author Max Taylor View Profile
Telegraph
9 hours ago
- Telegraph
Israeli minister taunts imprisoned Palestinian leader not seen in years
Israel's national security minister visited a prominent Palestinian leader in jail and told him: 'You will not win,' footage shows. Marwan Barghouti, a leading member of the Palestinian Fatah party, has spent more than 20 years behind bars after being sentenced for his role in anti-Israeli attacks in the early 2000s. Itamar Ben-Gvir, the ultra-nationalist minister, visited him in his cell and shared footage of the encounter on X. It is the first time Barghouti has been seen publicly in years. In the clip, the minister and two other individuals, including a prison guard, surround Barghouti in a corner of his cell. 'You will not defeat us. Whoever harms the people of Israel, whoever kills children, whoever kills women... we will erase them,' Mr Ben-Gvir says in Hebrew. Barghouti, known by his supporters as 'the Palestinian Mandela', tries to respond but is interrupted by Ben Gvir, who says: 'No, you know this. And it's been the case throughout history.' The video does not specify where Barghouti is currently being held. Sources told AFP the meeting took place 'by chance' at the Ganot prison in southern Israel during a ministerial visit. 'This morning I read that various 'senior officials' in the Palestinian Authority didn't quite like what I said to arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti – may his name be erased,' Mr Ben-Gvir said in the post accompanying the video on Friday morning. 'So I will repeat it again and again, without apology – whoever messes with the people of Israel, whoever murders our children, whoever murders our women, we will wipe them out. With God's help.' Solitary confinement Barghouti, who is now in his 60s, was arrested by Israel in 2002 and sentenced to life on murder charges in 2004. Israel considers him a terrorist and convicted him over his role in the second intifada, or uprising, from 2000-2005. He often tops opinion polls of popular Palestinian leaders. Rights groups say Barghouti has been held in solitary confinement since Oct 7 2023, the day Hamas launched its deadly attacks on Israel. Palestinian supporters have accused guards of 'brutally assaulting' him, which the Israeli prison service has denied. Arab Barghouti, his son, told AFP he was shocked by the video, both at the state of his father, whom he had not seen in three years, and at what he called the 'blatantly arrogant' minister. 'He's lost a lot of weight, and he looks old,' he said of his father. 'They will not break his image in the eyes of the Palestinian people.' In a statement released by Wafa, the official Palestinian news agency, the Palestinian Authority's foreign ministry denounced the confrontation as 'an unprecedented provocation'. Responding to the video in a post on X, the Palestinian mission to the United Nations said Barghouti was 'enduring extremely harsh humanitarian conditions in his solitary confinement cell'. It added that he had 'lost more than half his weight due to deliberate medical neglect and mistreatment'. 'At the same time, extremist Israeli Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir continues to directly threaten him in an attempt to break his will and resilience,' it said. It is understood Hamas have sought to exchange Barghouti for the remaining Israeli hostages it holds, but Israel is unlikely to free him.
