An Israeli soldier throws sound grenade at Palestinian protesters during clashes in the West Bank city of Bethlehem October 31, 2015. Israeli security forces shot and killed a Palestinian who ran at them with a knife in the occupied West Bank on the Saturday prior, police said, as a month-long wave of violence showed no signs of abating. An Israeli land appropriation in the West Bank this week, would not help ease tensions, global leaders have said.

New Zealand has joined a global chorus of condemnation towards an Israeli land-grab across large tracts of the occupied West Bank.

The appropriation of a large stretch of land near the city of Jericho occurred on the day US Vice President Joe Biden ended a visit to Israel last week.

Foreign media agencies have reported the Israeli military body that oversees Palestinian civilian affairs, confirmed Wednesday that about 580 acres (235 hectares) near the West Bank city of Jericho were declared government land.

Palestinians seek to establish an independent state in those territories, but US-brokered peace talks in 2014 have collapsed, and Palestine has cited Israeli occupation of the West Bank to be at the centre of tensions. Surges of violence over recent months have dampened chances of negotiations forming a solution in the near future.

READ MORE:

* Three Palestinians attack Israeli troops in West Bank, shot dead: army

* Iran fires 2 missiles marked with 'Israel must be wiped out'

* Israel to launch advanced missile defence system

* Palestinians in Gaza Strip enjoy movie night for the first time

* Israeli teens jailed for burning Palestinian boy alive

Foreign Minister Murray McCully said New Zealand would be talking with fellow UN Security Council members "about an appropriate response".

He described the most recent Israeli appropriation of land in the occupied Palestinian territories as "deeply unhelpful".



"Israel's settlement activity continues to threaten the viability of a two-state solution.



"New Zealand would like to see both sides return to the negotiating table and this latest announcement will only serve to push the two parties further apart," McCully said.

New Zealand is part-way through a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, represented by diplomat Gerard Van Boheman.



McCully joins a group of major foreign leaders, who have described the move as "concerning".

In Paris, Foreign Ministry spokesman Romain Nadal said France was "extremely concerned" by the Israeli decision.

"Settlements constitute a violation of international law and contradict commitments made by Israeli authorities in favour of a two-state solution."

In a statement from Germany's foreign ministry, the Government said all people in Israel and Palestine had a right to live in peace and security.

"Only a clear political perspective for a sustainable two-state solution can guarantee this in the long term," the ministry said.

The United Kingdom's Foreign Office also released a statement on Wednesday, saying it "condemned" Israeli moves and damaged peace prospects with the Palestinians.

"We condemn the Israeli government's decision to take over 585 acres of land in the West Bank as 'state land'. Such steps clearly damage the diminishing prospects for a two state solution. The UK and our international partners have consistently called for an end to settlement expansion, which is illegal under international law and an obstacle to peace," it said.

"If the Israeli government is truly committed to a two-state solution then it will reverse its decision," the statement said.

US State Department spokesman John Kirby told US media it was undermining peace in the area.

"This decision is, in our view, the latest step in what appears to be an ongoing process of land expropriations, settlement expansions and legalizations of outposts that is fundamentally undermining the prospects for a two-state solution."