Extremist Israeli minister Bezalel Smotrich has allocated 20 million US dollars to protect outposts built by settlers without authorisation in the West Bank.
The Israeli government has approved the allocation of 75 million shekels (about 20 million dollars) to enhance the security of illegal settlement outposts in the West Bank.
While all Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law, these outposts are built without�the authorisation of the Israeli government�and usually on stolen private Palestinian land.
This funding comes along with ongoing raids and arrests throughout the West Bank, which have resulted in 303 deaths and 3,450 injuries since 7 October, and the indiscriminate Israeli war against the�Gaza Strip, which has led to nearly 21,000 deaths and over 54,000 injuries.
At its latest weekly meeting, the Israeli government endorsed Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's proposal to allocate the money for the security of these unauthorised settler outposts, as reported by the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth.
The continued financial support for the outposts during wartime has drawn major criticism in Israel
However, Smotrich said that the "lives of settlers are equally important".
"The campaign against defending settlers in these outposts, who are now at the forefront of combat, is cruel,"
Smotrich, also a settler, added, "The state has a fundamental responsibility. The heroic settlers deserve basic security at home, and much more.�
According to the Israeli NGO Peace Now, there are 144 settlements, authorised by the Israeli government in the West Bank as well as over 100 unauthorised outposts. There are an estimated 700,000 Israeli settlers living in the West Bank and East Jerusalem in violation of international law.
