Israel to build 5,700 illegal settlements: Report

RAMALLAH, Palestine

Israel's Jerusalem Municipality has approved a decision to build 5,700 illegal settlements, the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) said on Saturday.

The new settlements will be able to accommodate 20,000 people, according to a report by the organization's National Office of Defending Land and Tackling Settlement.

The settlement units will be built near Wadi Fukin, southwest of Bethlehem.

The report claims 1,450 settlement units are planned to be established between Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Also, 2,645 units are expected to receive approval in the future.

The illegal settlement plans have drastically increased since the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the report added.

Last December, Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, drawing widespread condemnation from across the region and angry protests in the Palestinian territories.

Jerusalem remains at the heart of the Middle East conflict, with Palestinians hoping that East Jerusalem -- occupied by Israel since 1967 -- might eventually serve as the capital of a Palestinian state.

International law views the West Bank and East Jerusalem as "occupied territories" and considers all Jewish settlement-building activity on the land as illegal.