Israel has issued a tender for the construction of 974 new illegal housing units in the Efrat settlement, a strategic area located south of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, an Israeli watchdog says, Al Jazeera reports.

The tender is for the establishment of a new Israeli neighbourhood that expands the Efrat settlement in the occupied territories by 644 dunams and will increase the number of residents by approximately 40 percent, according to Peace Now.

The anti-settlement group reported that the Efrat settlement blocks the development of an envisaged Bethlehem metropolis to the south. If Israel seeks to annex the area, it will cut off the entire southern West Bank, which depends on the connection to the north through Bethlehem on Highway 60, to the east of which the Efrat settlement is located.

“While the people of Israel set their sights on the release of the hostages and an end to the war, the Netanyahu government is operating ‘on steroids’ to establish facts on the ground that will destroy the chance for peace and compromise,” Peace Now said.

“It is now clear that military action alone will not bring a solution to the conflict or security to Israel, and that ultimately we will have to reach an agreement with the Palestinians. The Netanyahu government is harming Israeli interests and torpedoing the only solution that can bring us security and peace.”