Israeli gov’t’s settlement policy is “disastrous”, says former German ambassador

Former German ambassador to Israel, Steffen Seibert, said that while Israel’s security is part of Germany’s reason of state, the support “does not apply to settlers in the Jordan Valley”.

Seibert criticises illegal Israeli settlements

Speaking to DIE ZEIT, Seibert called the Israeli government’s settlement projects in Palestine’s occupied West Bank “displacement through psychological and physical violence". 

“Under international law, these are illegal settlements driven by the ideology that this land belongs solely to us - that God gave it to us, “ the former spokesperson for Angela Merkel told the newspaper.

"The concept of “reason of state” does not extend to that; it does not support a sense of superiority over another population”, Seibert said, adding it was equally important for Palestinians to respect Israeli’s right to live in their own state.

Siebert urged the German government to clarify what is meant by “standing by Israel” and that standing by Israel does not mean “support extends to every action taken by the Israeli state - for instance, the occupation, which is now entering its 60th year”. 

Settler violence has increased since October 7

Israeli forces first occupied the West Bank in June 1967. Amnesty International characterises the military project as “ruthless policies of land confiscation, illegal settlement and dispossession, coupled with rampant institutionalised discrimination [and] [...] immense suffering [for] Palestinians”. 

Since October 7, 2023, there has been an uptick in settler violence in the West Bank. According to UN figures, in 2026 so far, around 3.800 Palestinians (nearly half of them children) have been displaced due to settler violence and 76 Palestinians (including 18 children) have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the occupied territory. 

Speaking at the UN, Israeli UN Ambassador Danny Danon recently spurned suggestions that Israeli settlement projects were obstacles to peace, and claimed the Israeli state had biblical, historical and legal entitlement to the West Bank.

The Israeli government’s expansion plans are not limited to Palestinian territories. In April, in a speech in the West Bank, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that a “final political leg” of the war would involve expanding Israel to encompass parts of Syria and Lebanon.