RAMALLAH, February 9, 2017 (WAFA) – President Mahmoud Abbas’ speech at the French Senate and Israel’s approval of the construction of new housing units in West Bank settlements hit the front page headlines in Palestinian dailies on Thursday.

The dailies highlighted Abbas’ speech stressing the recognition of the state of Palestine akin to the recognition of Israel, calling for the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 2334 and warning against repercussions of relocating the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

Al-Quds said Israel approved the construction of 1,243 new settler units in settlements across the West Bank.

Al-Ayyam explained that Israel approved the construction of 181 units in East Jerusalem and 1,162 units in West Bank settlements.

The dailies reported government slamming the latest settlement construction plans as a “defiance of the international community.”

The dailies said Palestinian human rights organizations petitioned the Israeli Supreme Court to strike down the so-called “Regularization law.” Al-Ayyam said the court gave the Israeli government a month to respond to the petition against the law.

Highlighting international condemnations of the law, al-Quds and al-Hayat al-Jadida reported a spokesperson for the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs stating that “our trust in Israel’s commitment to the two-state solution has become very weak following (the passage of) the law.”

Al-Ayyam reported Belgium as slamming the law and calling on Israel not to implement it, while al-Quds published an article for lawmaker Ahmad Tibi slamming the law as “the biggest robbery in modern history.”

Al-Quds reported Jordan’s King Abdullah stressing during a meeting with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry in Amman the need for reviving Palestinian-Israeli peace talks.

Spotlighting home demolitions, al-Quds and al-Ayyam said Israeli bulldozers demolished a Palestinian residential building under construction in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Beit Hanina.

Al-Ayyam added bulldozers also demolished the foundation of another uncompleted building in the same neighborhood.

It said Israeli occupation authorities delivered evacuation notices to Palestinians in the West Bank district of Salfit.

Israeli forces reportedly delivered evacuation notices to Palestinians in Deir Istiya village, near Salfit, ordering them to evacuate their lands, which have become part of an Israeli nature reserve. They also delivered an evacuation notice to a livestock barn in Deir Ballut village.

Al-Quds added settlers razed Palestinian land in the Nablus area town of Jaloud in the northern West Bank.

It reported the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing, as stating they received Israeli offers to make a prisoners’ swap deal.

The three dailies said Arab Bank chairman of board, Sabih Masri, has concluded a deal to buy the Hariri family’s 20 percent stake in Jordan’s Arab Bank Group for $1.2 billion.

Al-Ayyam and al-Hayat al-Jadida said an elderly Palestinian man died after being run over by an Israeli settler near al-Khader town, south of Bethlehem.

Al-Ayyam said Israeli forces detained five Palestinians after physically assaulting them during a raid into the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan.

It reported secretary general of the PLO’s Executive Committee, Saeb Erekat, urged US President Donald Trump to tell Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop settlement construction and not to remain silent about this matter.

K.F./M.K.