Israeli authorities have sanctioned the single-largest land confiscation in the occupied West Bank in more than 30 years.
This massive land grab was authorized in June and only revealed on July 3rd by the Tel Aviv-based Israeli peace activist and anti-illegal settlement organization Peace Now.
According to Peace Now, the approved appropriation spans 12.7 square kilometers (4.9 square miles) in the Jordan Valley, northeast of the West Bank's de facto capital of Ramallah. The move has been internationally condemned as an illegal annexation that amounts to the Israeli government giving itself the authority to lease land to Israeli settlers while barring private Palestinian land ownership in the annexed area.
This represents the largest land grab since 1993, and it follows the seizures of 2.6 square kilometers (one square mile) of land in February and eight square kilometers (3.1 square miles) of land in March.
"2024 marks the peak in the extent of declarations of state land," Peace Now emphasized in its statement, highlighting the acceleration of Israeli settlement expansion efforts. (Related: Israel declares major LAND GRAB in West Bank.)
This move is seen as not only expanding Israeli control over the region but also creating "territorial continuity" between existing Israeli settlements, particularly in a strategic corridor bordering Jordan. According to Peace Now, such actions undermine the viability of a contiguous Palestinian state by fragmenting Palestinian territories and consolidating Israeli presence.
Despite international criticism, Israeli authorities are convening meetings to formalize plans that facilitate the construction and expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
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Land grab condemned by international community
Israel's continued land confiscations in the West Bank are deemed illegal under international law and pose a significant barrier to long-term peace as they hinder the creation of a stable and independent Palestinian state and exacerbate local tensions, which can lead to more radicalization and more militancy among both Israelis and Palestinians.
Despite global condemnation, Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem have grown to encompass more than 200 settlements and outposts, housing over 700,000 Jewish settlers.
A Palestinian official condemned the seizure as a deliberate attempt to dispossess Palestinians from their land and undermine their aspirations for statehood. The UN echoed these concerns, labeling the land declaration as a significant setback for the prospects of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The declaration was welcomed by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a prominent figure in Israel's extremist settler movement and who is responsible for overseeing settlement policies in the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Smotrich advocates for the annexation of the entire West Bank into what he refers to as "Greater Israel," a stance that aligns with expansionist views within Israel's extremist political spectrum.
Critics, including Peace Now, accuse Smotrich and Netanyahu of prioritizing settlement expansion over international calls for a political resolution to the conflict. They argue that such actions not only undermine the prospects for peace but also exacerbate tensions in the region, potentially fueling further instability.
Learn the latest news coming out of Israel and Palestine at IsraelCollapse.com.
Watch this clip from Middle East Eye reporting on a group if illegal Israeli settlers attempting to burn down a Palestinian village in the West Bank.
This video is from the channel The Prisoner on Brighteon.com.
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