A three member human rights panel called on Israel to halt further settlement expansion, warning that it could be subject to prosecution as potential war crimes.
In a report the panel argued that the settlements were against the Fourth Geneva Convention which forbids the resettlement of civilian populations into occupied territory, and were "leading to a creeping annexation that prevents the establishment of a contiguous and viable Palestinian state and undermines the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination,"
A French judge who led the panel, Christine Chanet, said:
"Israel must cease settlement activities and provide adequate, prompt and effective remedy to the victims of violations of human rights,"
"To transfer its own population into an occupied territory is prohibited because it is an obstacle to the exercise of the right to self-determination,"
"We have highlighted states' responsibility because the facts we denounce are known. The problem is nobody is doing anything about it."
