Israel PM Netanyahu 'proposes high-speed tunnel roads' for segregated West Bank

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has proposed the construction of a network of tunnel roads under the occupied West Bank, Israeli news site Zman Israel reported Saturday.

Netanyahu, who became premier late last year and appointed one of Israel's most right-wing governments, made the suggestion during a conversation with French investors at a Paris hotel, according to the report.

The tunnels would connect Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and make it easier for Israel to annex them, the report said.

The network would also link Palestinian towns together, the Israel premier reportedly said.

Several of the investors at the hotel room said they were interested in financing the project, Zman Israel reported.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.

Hundreds of thousands of settlers live on the Palestinian territory illegally, to sustained international outcry. The Netanyahu-led government has vowed to speed up settlement approval and construction.

Palestinians in the West Bank are barred from using some roads that run through the territory to connect settlements to each other and the rest of Israel.