Israeli President Reuven Rivlin has said the Authorisation Bill, which aims to legalise settlements built on privately-owned Palestinian land, will make Israel look like an “apartheid state” if it passes into law.
The president reportedly made the comment during a meeting last Wednesday, two days after the Knesset passed the bill. The legislation will be the subject of a High Court challenge from several NGOs.
“The state of Israel has accepted international law, which does not allow a country acting according to it to apply and enforce its laws in territories that are not under its sovereignty. If it does so, that’s legal cacophony. Israel will be seen as an apartheid state, which it is not,” Mr Rivlin was quoted as saying.
The law would legalise some 3,900 homes — around 800 in unauthorised outposts and the remainder in recognised settlements.
“There is no question here. The government of Israel simply cannot apply the laws of the Knesset to territories that are not under its sovereignty,” Mr Rivlin reportedly said.