This year, plans for just under 47,390 settlements have progressed in various ways, compared with around 26,170 last year, according to the report. On average, the number of settlements increased by an average of 12,815 each year between 2017 and 2022.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemns the expansion of settlements, saying they "continue to fuel tensions, prevent Palestinians from accessing their land and threaten the possibility of establishing a fully independent, democratic, contiguous and sovereign Palestinian State."
Over 500,000 Israelis live in settlements in the occupied West Bank, which are illegal under international law. Settler violence against Palestinians has escalated during the Gaza war and in connection with the recent expansion of settlements promoted by the Israeli government.
