UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the decision of Israel's Higher Planning Committee to approve more than 3,400 housing units in the E1 area of the occupied West Bank, according to a statement released on Wednesday. "Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are a violation of international law and run directly counter to UN resolutions," the statement said. "The advancement of this project is an existential threat to the two-State solution. It would sever the northern and southern West Bank and have severe consequences for the territorial contiguity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory," it added. The secretary-general reiterated his call for the Israeli government to halt all settlement activity immediately and to comply fully with its obligations under international law, as well as to act by relevant UN resolutions and in line with the International Court of Justice's Advisory Opinion of July 19, 2024, it added. Israel's Higher Planning Council authorized 3,753 housing units on Wednesday, including 3,401 for final approval in the E1 neighborhood of Ma'ale Adumim. The project would link settlements to create a continuum separating the West Bank from East Jerusalem. SHOTLIST: FILE: UN Headquarters, New York City - Date Unknown 1. UN logo; 2. UN flag; 3. UN headquarters; 4. UN headquarters in distance; FILE: Tel Aviv, Israel - June 2021 5. National flag of Israel; FILE: Israel - Nov 1, 2022 6. Various of Israeli Parliament Knesset; FILE: Jenin, West Bank - 2025 7. Various of damaged buildings, rubble-strewn street; FILE: Jenin, West Bank - Jan 22, 2025 8. Various of Israeli military vehicles, bulldozers. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]