On Dec. 23, the U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 2334 by a vote of 14-0. By abstaining, the United States chose not to veto the resolution's criticism of Israeli settlements in lands occupied since the 1967 war. About 600,000 Jews live in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. A large number of settlements are unauthorized, although some have been retroactively legalized.

By contrast Palestinians' requests for building approvals are routinely rejected and unauthorized constructions are promptly demolished by army bulldozers. With de facto colonization by stealth, the maze of barriers, checkpoints and fences no longer correspond to internationally recognized demarcation lines. Concerned Israelis, including former Prime Ministers Ehud Barak and Ehud Olmert, have expressed fears of a creeping apartheid that could destroy Israeli society to protect the state.

The settlements violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention: "The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies." In a 2004 advisory opinion, the World Court reaffirmed their illegality. Israel argues that all authorized settlements are legal.