“Friedman proves the US approach that endorses the zionist enemy against the Palestinian people,” said Dr. Basem Naim, a member of the International Relations Office of Hamas Movement, said in a press statement on Thursday.

He pointed out that Friedman, who is the ambassador of a powerful country, is supposed to abide by international law and reject settlements, as it constitutes a violation of international law. 

“The American ambassador is pushing towards stirring more chaos and instability, and reinforcing the law of the jungle”, he underlined.

On Monday, the israeli TV7 stated that Friedman called on Israel during a visit to the family of a settler who was killed in Jenin, to accelerate the pace of settlement construction in the West Bank, in response to her murder.

The settler, Esther Horgen, was killed on 20 December, near Tal Menashe settlement, west of Jenin, in the northern West Bank.

The Israeli human rights movement, Peace Now, confirmed that settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories have doubled during the era of US President Donald Trump.

According to the movement’s data, there are 661,000 Israeli settlers, 132 large settlements, and 124 random settlement outposts in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as of late last November.