New Zealand prime minister says Israel's Netanyahu has 'lost the plot'
Luxon told reporters that the lack of humanitarian assistance, the forceful displacement of people and the annexation of Gaza were utterly appalling and that Netanyahu had gone way too far.
"I think he has lost the plot," added Luxon, who heads the centre-right coalition government. "What we are seeing overnight, the attack on Gaza City, is utterly, utterly unacceptable."
Luxon said earlier this week New Zealand was considering whether to recognise a Palestinian state. Close ally Australia on Monday joined Canada, the UK and France in announcing it would do so at a UN conference in September.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached "unimaginable levels", Britain, Canada, Australia and several of their European allies said on Tuesday, calling on Israel to allow unrestricted aid into the war-torn Palestinian enclave.
Israel has denied responsibility for hunger spreading in Gaza, accusing Hamas militants of stealing aid shipments, which Hamas denies.
Ahead of Wednesday's parliamentary session, a small number of protesters gathered outside the country's parliament buildings, beating pots and pans. Local media organisation Stuff reported protesters chanted "MPs grow a spine, recognise Palestine".
On Tuesday, Greens parliamentarian Chloe Swarbrick was removed from parliament's debating chamber after she refused to apologise for a comment insinuating government politicians were spineless for not supporting a bill to "sanction Israel for its war crimes".
Swarbrick was ordered to leave the debating chamber for a second day on Wednesday after she again refused to apologise. When she refused to leave, the government voted to suspend her.
"Sixty-eight members of this House were accused of being spineless," House speaker Gerry Brownlee said. "There has never been a time where personal insults like that delivered inside a speech were accepted by this House and I'm not going to start accepting it."
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CNA
9 hours ago
- CNA
Israel's finance minister announces settlement plan to 'bury' idea of Palestinian state
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CNA
9 hours ago
- CNA
Israel's Smotrich announces settlement plan to 'bury' idea of Palestinian state
TEL AVIV: Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced work would start on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, a move his office said would "bury" the idea of a Palestinian state. The Palestinian government, allies and campaign groups condemned the scheme, calling it illegal and saying the fragmentation of territory would rip up any internationally backed peace plans for the region. Standing at the site of the planned settlement in Maale Adumim on Thursday (Aug 14), Smotrich said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had agreed to the revival of the E1 development, though there was no immediate confirmation from either. 'Whoever in the world is trying to recognise a Palestinian state today will receive our answer on the ground. Not with documents nor with decisions or statements, but with facts. Facts of houses, facts of neighbourhoods," Smotrich said. Israel froze construction plans at Maale Adumim in 2012, and again after a revival in 2020, because of objections from the US, European allies and other powers who considered the project a threat to any future peace deal with the Palestinians. The move could further isolate Israel, which has watched some of its Western allies condemn its military offensive in Gaza and announce they will recognise a Palestinian state. Palestinians fear the settlement building in the West Bank - which has sharply intensified since the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that led to the Gaza war - will rob them of any chance to build a state of their own in the area. In a statement headlined "Burying the idea of a Palestinian state," Smotrich's spokesperson said the minister had approved the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem. In Maale Adumim, Smotrich told Reuters the plan would go into effect on Wednesday. Breaking the Silence, an Israeli rights group established by former Israeli soldiers, criticised Smotrich, accusing him of encouraging West Bank settlement activity while the world's attention was on the Gaza war. "This land grab and settlement expansion will not only further fragment the Palestinian territory, but will further entrench apartheid," it said. Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian president's spokesperson, called on the United States to pressure Israel to stop settlement building. "The EU rejects any territorial change that is not part of a political agreement between involved parties. So annexation of territory is illegal under international law," European Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper said during a press briefing. Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said the move showed that Israel "seeks to appropriate land owned by Palestinians in order to prevent a two-state solution". Qatar, which has mediated between Hamas and Israel in efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza, condemned Smotrich's actions as a "blatant violation of international law". HOUSE BUILDING "IN A YEAR" Peace Now, which tracks settlement activity in the West Bank, said there were still steps needed before construction. But if all went through, infrastructure work could begin within a few months, and house building in about a year. 'The E1 plan is deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution. We are standing at the edge of an abyss, and the government is driving us forward at full speed," Peace Now said in a statement. Palestinians were already demoralised by the Israeli military campaign which has killed more than 61,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, and fear Israel will ultimately push them out of that territory. About 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel annexed East Jerusalem in a move not recognised by most countries but has not formally extended sovereignty over the West Bank. The UN and most world powers say settlement expansion has eroded the viability of a two-state solution by fragmenting Palestinian territory. The two-state plan envisages a Palestinian state in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, existing side by side with Israel. Israel cites historical and biblical ties to the area and says the settlements provide strategic depth and security. Most of the global community considers all settlements illegal under international law. Israel rejects this interpretation, saying the West Bank is "disputed" rather than "occupied" territory. Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand imposed sanctions in June on Smotrich and another far-right minister who advocates for settlement expansion, accusing both of them of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Straits Times
10 hours ago
- Straits Times
The West Bank settlements at the heart of the Middle East conflict
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A view of part of the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, August 14, 2025. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun Israeli settlement building, a point of contention at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, has come back into focus after Israel's far-right finance minister revived a plan that would divide the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem. WHAT IS A SETTLEMENT? An Israeli settlement is made up of housing units built for Jewish Israelis on land captured by Israel from Jordan in the 1967 Middle East war, primarily in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The land is home to Palestinians who seek a future independent state. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's nationalist government has backed settlers, and building and settler incursions have ramped up since the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023 triggered the Gaza war. Palestinians have accused heavily armed Israeli settlers of stealing their land and destroying their olive trees, a symbol of Palestinian identity. Palestinians say Israeli forces do not protect them from settler violence. The Israeli military says soldiers are often dispatched to deal with any trouble. WHAT DOES ISRAEL SAY ABOUT SETTLEMENTS? Israel says it has historical and biblical ties to the area that it calls it Judea and Samaria, though most world powers consider all the settlements illegal. Numerous UN Security Council resolutions have called on Israel to halt all settlement activity, but Israel says settlements are critical to its strategic depth and security. In 2019, during U.S. President Donald Trump's first term, the U.S. dropped a long-held stance that deemed settlements illegal. President Joe Biden restored that stance in line with international consensus. In January, in his second term, Trump rescinded sanctions imposed by the former Biden administration on far-right Israeli settler groups and individuals accused of being involved in violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. HOW SETTLEMENTS AFFECT THE IDEA OF A TWO-STATE SOLUTION A 1993 agreement between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), known as the Oslo Accords, was designed to pave the way for the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip alongside Israel. The U.N. and most world powers say settlement building is eroding the viability of that two-state solution by fragmenting Palestinian territory. Israel's allies, including France, Britain and Canada, have said they may move to recognise Palestinian statehood in September. WHAT IS THE CURRENT STATUS OF SETTLEMENTS? Israel has expanded and consolidated settlements in the West Bank as it continues its war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, according to a UN report that was based on research between November 1, 2023 and October 31, 2024. About 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which Israel annexed in a move not recognised by most countries. Israel refuses to cede control of the West Bank, a position it says has been reinforced since the Hamas-led militant attack on its territory, launched from Gaza October 7, 2023. It says the future of the settlements should be resolved in peace negotiations. REUTERS
