(Jerusalem) -- American Jews are being urged to buy land and vacation homes in controversial Israeli settlements on the West Bank of the Jordan River.

The massive area is a point of contention between Israel and the Palestinians, and the existence of the settlements has blocked peace efforts for decades.

New York state assemblyman Dov Hikind, a Democrat, recently visited the West Bank and urged fellow American Jews to invest in property there instead of Florida.

He noted he disagrees with President Obama's position that Israel should halt settlements in the West Bank, dismissing the President's view as, quote, "extreme."

Israel won control of the West Bank during the six-day war of June 1967, when Egypt, Jordan and Syria and other Arab nations attacked the Jewish state.

Israel prevailed and eventually relinquished control of some captured territory.

But it's held on to the West Bank, building additional settlements.

The United Nations has declared most of the settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law.

　

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