The Knesset has advanced a bill sponsored by pro-settlement groups that would allow the direct purchase of land in the occupied West Bank, The Times of Israel has reported.

In a preliminary reading, lawmakers voted in favour of a bill overturning the legal provision that prevents non-Muslims from buying real estate in the occupied West Bank.

The Israeli newspaper reported that the bill was backed by pro-settlement groups that see the prohibition on buying land in the West Bank as discriminatory against Jews.