Nikolay Mladenov, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, has said that the Israeli Regularisation Bill, allowing dozens of Jewish outposts to be built on private Palestinian land, crosses a very thick red line toward annexation of the occupied West Bank.

In a statement, Mr. Mladenov said, "This is the first time the Israeli Knesset legislates in the occupied Palestinian lands and particularly on property issues."

"The Bill opens the potential for the full annexation of the West Bank and therefore undermines substantially the two-state solution," Mladenov added.

He also raised the possibility that the law could open Israel up to potential prosecution by the International Criminal Court, the threat of which the Jewish state’s Attorney General has warned.