The Palestinian government condemned the scheme, calling it illegal and saying the fragmentation of territory would rip up peace plans for the region.

Bezalel Smotrich, the finance minister, said on Thursday that a plan to significantly expand a settlement near occupied East Jerusalem had won approval. But a procedural step remained.

Israel’s far-right finance minister has announced a contentious new settlement construction in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which Palestinians and rights groups worry will scuttle plans for a futur