RAMALLAH, West Bank — Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu, who is tasked with forming the Israeli government, and leader of the far-right Jewish Power party Itamar Ben-Gvir agreed on Nov. 16 to legalize 65 settlement outposts within 60 days of forming the new government and amend the Disengagement Law under which Israel dismantled four settlements in the northern West Bank and all settlements in the Gaza Strip in 2005.

The amendment allows the return of settlers to the four evacuated West Bank settlements, including the controversial Homesh settlement located between Jenin and Nablus, which includes a makeshift religious school attended by tens of thousands of settlers.

In response, the Palestinian presidency said on Nov. 17 that the agreement between Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir contradicts all international resolutions and international law, noting that this agreement encourages settlements and will lead to seizing more Palestinian land and undermining any possibility of achieving peace and establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the two-state solution and in accordance with international resolutions.

On the same day, Nov. 17, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged in a press statement the international community and the US administration to take the necessary measures to ensure that the agreement between Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir is not implemented to avoid retroactively legalizing settlements and outposts on Palestinian lands.