US consular services in illegal Israeli settlement in West Bank condemned

US move to provide consular services in Efrat settlement slammed as breach of international law.Published On 25 Feb 2026Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA) have condemned an announcement by the United States that it will offer consular services at a settlement in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.In a statement on Wednesday, Hamas described the move as “a dangerous precedent” and “a practical recognition of the legitimacy of colonial-settlements and the occupation’s control over the West Bank”.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4US to provide consular services in illegal Israeli settlementlist 2 of 4Netanyahu greets Indian PM Modi as he lands in Israellist 3 of 4Lebanon’s second airport could receive passengers by summer, officials saylist 4 of 4Palestinian filmmaker showcases the beauty of pre-war Gazaend of listThe Palestine Liberation Organization’s Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission said in a statement the decision “constitutes a clear violation of international law and a blatant favouring of the occupation authorities”.On Tuesday, the US embassy in Jerusalem announced it would start providing passport services at the Efrat settlement, located between Bethlehem and Hebron, on Friday. All Israeli settlements and outposts in the West Bank are illegal under international law.Similar services are being planned for the Beitar Illit settlement, the Palestinian city of Ramallah and in other cities in Israel, the embassy said. Currently, the US offers consular and passport services at its embassy in West Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.Minister Mu’ayyad Sha’ban, head of the PA commission, noted that all settlements are illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention. He added that extending consular services to an illegal settlement “entails a breach of the principle of nonrecognition of an unlawful situation – a well-established norm in international law that obliges states to refrain from any action that would confer official or practical legitimacy upon the consequences of serious violations”.‘De facto annexation’Hamas said the decision “unveils the stark contradiction in the stances of the US administration, which claims to oppose the West Bank annexation, while taking field steps that reinforce annexation and entrench Israeli sovereignty over our occupied land”.