A plan presented by an Israeli minister would divide the occupied West Bank and complicate efforts for a two-state solution, a German Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.

"The German government calls on the Israeli government to stop settlement construction and will only recognize changes to the borders of June 4, 1967, that have been agreed upon by the parties to the conflict," the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said late on Thursday.

"The settlement construction violates international law and relevant UN Security Council resolutions," the spokesperson added. "It complicates a negotiated two-state solution and an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, as demanded by the International Court of Justice."

What is the new West Bank settlement plan?

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Thursday announced the plan for construction of 3,400 housing units in the so-called E1 area between East Jerusalem and the Maale Adumim settlement, saying it "buries" the possibility of an independent Palestinian state.

Construction in the E1 area is especially controversial as it links the major West Bank cities of Ramallah and Bethlehem and would effectively divide the Palestinian territory into northern and southern sections, making a contiguous territory for a future independent state unviable.

The move comes amid a deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, driven by Israel's ongoing military campaign against the Hamas militant group.

What is the international view of Israel's West Bank settlements?

Israel took control of the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967. More than 700,000 settlers now live among approximately 3 million Palestinians. The Palestinians claim these areas for their own state, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The UN human rights office on Friday called the settlement plan illegal under international law and said it put nearby Palestinians at risk of forced eviction, Reuters news agency reported. A spokesperson for the UN rights organization said it would be "a war crime for an occupying power to transfer its own civilian population into the territory it occupies."

Israel rejects this interpretation, saying the West Bank is "disputed" rather than occupied territory.

The European Union's chief diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said the plan "further undermines the two-state solution while being a breach of international law" and called on Israel "to desist."

"The EU reiterates its call on Israel to halt settlement construction," she added.

Peace Now, an Israeli organization that tracks settlements in the West Bank, called the plan "deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution."

Edited by: Louis Oelofse