Israeli government lifts ban on return to West Bank settlements

The Israeli parliament on Tuesday paved the way for Jewish settlers' return to four settlements in the occupied West Bank by amending a 2005 law that ordered their evacuation in a move condemned by the Palestinian Authority and the European Union. The repeal of certain clauses in a previous disengagement law would allow Jewish residents to return to four West Bank settlements they were ordered to vacate in 2005 on condition of approval by the Israeli military.