Israeli settlers inaugurate new West Bank settlement

JERUSALEM, March 26 (Xinhua) -- The Israelis inaugurated a new government-sponsored settlement in the occupied West Bank on Monday.

The establishment of the settlement, known as Amichai, would be home to about 40 families.

Twenty-five of the families are settlers that Israel evicted last year from Amona, an outpost illegally built on private Palestinian land.

Amichai was built as part of a deal between the settlers and the Israeli government to find new homes for them in the West Bank.

Head of the Shomron Regional Council, Avi Roeh said in the ceremony that "from the history of the Jewish people we gain strength to continue to increase our hold on the Land of Israel."

Israel occupied the West Bank in the 1967 Middle East war and has kept its control over the territories despite international criticism.

The settlements are illegal under international law and most of the international community consider them an obstacle to peace. Enditem