Jordan has strongly condemned the Israeli occupation authorities’ authorization of the establishment of a new settlement in the heart of the southern occupied West Bank city of al-Khalil.

In a statement, Jordanian Foreign Minister, Ayman Safadi, called on the international community to assume its responsibilities regarding illegal Israeli settlement activity on occupied Palestinian land.

Safadi lashed out at Israel for green-lighting settlement construction in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukaber along with other settlement projects in Qalandia, to the north of Jerusalem city, and also in the Old City of al-Khalil, in the southern occupied West Bank.

The Jordanian FM said such bids are flagrant violations of international law and a threat to peace-making initiatives.

He further warned that Israel's unabated settlement activity undermines the two-state solution and thwarts all chances for a comprehensive and lasting peace.

On Saturday, Israel’s Defense Minister, Naftali Bennett, signaled the go-ahead for the construction of a new settler neighborhood in the wholesale market area in the city of al-Khalil.

This came only a couple of weeks after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the Jewish-only settlements in occupied Jerusalem and the West Bank are no longer inconsistent with international law, despite the fact that they flagrantly breach United Nations resolutions on settlements, specifically Security Council resolution 2334 of 2016, and the Fourth Geneva Convention.