Most comments in the media about settlement construction in the occupied territories which state the settlements are illegal under international law end with comment "Israel disputes this". Whilst this may be true of settlements in East Jeruselem which Israel has annexed, this is simply not true for settlements in the West Bank which Israel hasn't annexed.
Israel has effective control over this land, land that is not claimed by any other sovereign state but Israel has steadfastly refused to annexed the land.
If Israel had the courage of its convictions it would annex the land.
Annexation it the internationally recognised pathway to incorporating land under a states military contol into that states sovereign territory.
It is Israel itself who chooses to deny itself sovereinty over the occupied territories.
It administers the land under the law of occupying powers and as such Israel is a trustee not the owner of the land. The laws of occupying powers are quite clear, it is illegal to deprive private landowners of their land. Land can be occupied for military necessity but this doesn't extinguish the ownership rights of the original owners and the land must be returned to them when the military requirement has passed. Settlement preclude this.
The effect Israels' approach (of refusing to annex the land) is to absolve itself of any need to integrate the lands Arabic population who would become citizens of Israel under such a move into the body politic of israel. In other words Israel holdson to the dowery (the land) but has chosen not to get married and has kept theproposed bride in the basement for forty years.
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