Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has hit back at French President Emmanuel Macron, after France said it could harden its position on Israel if it continues to block humanitarian aid to Gaza.

“This is a historic moment for settlement, a crushing answer to the terrorist organisations and a clear message to Macron and his friends: you will recognize a Palestinian state on paper and the paper will be thrown into the dustbin of history,” Katz was cited as saying by Israeli media, while on a visit to the Israeli settlement of Sha Nur.

The minister further vowed to build a “Jewish Israeli state” in the occupied West Bank, a day after the government announced the creation of 22 new settlements in the territory.