Israel's far-right finance minister announced approval of the construction of a contentious settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank that he says "buries the idea of a Palestinian state."

Israel is moving forward with controversial plans to build thousands of new housing units in the occupied West Bank, splitting the territory in two, a scheme far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said would “permanently bury the idea of a Palestinian state.

Israel plans to expand settlements into an area of the West Bank that would effectively bisect the enclave — a move its finance minister said “buries the idea of a Palestinian state.”