In Israel and the Occupied Territories, the Israeli government has announced plans to build a new settlement in the Occupied West Bank. Critics call the move a new escalation in Israel’s repeated violations of US-backed agreements. Israel had previously vowed to stop settlement activity but then claimed its pledge only applied to building new settlements, not expanding existing ones. The latest plan violates even that claim. Twenty homes are slated to be built at the site, known as Maskiot, near the West Bank’s eastern border with Jordan. In a statement, the State Department refused to condemn the Israeli move, calling it “not helpful.”