'Israel' approved largest West Bank land seizure in over 30 years
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The usurped pieces of land are located northeast of Ramallah, occupied West Bank.
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New housing units seen in an occupied West Bank Israeli settlement, on June 18, 2023 (AP)
The largest seizure of land in the occupied West Bank in more than three decades has been just approved by "Israel", according to anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now, which could further exacerbate tensions already on the rise since the Israeli genocide on Gaza started on October 7.
The approved seizure involves 12.7 square kilometers (nearly 5 square miles) of land in the Jordan Valley. This, according to the group's research, constitutes the largest single seizure approved since the 1993 Oslo Accords
Following the seizure of 8 square kilometers (about 3 square miles) of land in the occupied West Bank in March and 2.6 square kilometers (1 square mile) in February, today's land seizure was approved late last month but was only made public on Wednesday.
The contiguous settlements are situated northeast of Ramallah, and the occupation has classified them as "state lands", meaning that Palestinians cannot own them and they can only be leased to Israelis.
Read next: Police, settlers clash over settlement outposts amid int'l scrutiny
Police, settlers clash over settlement outposts amid int'l scrutiny
Israeli police repeatedly clashed with settlers in the occupied West Bank while dismantling an unauthorized settler outpost early on Wednesday, according to video footage reviewed by Reuters.
The video showed police using excavators to demolish makeshift structures at the outpost. Settlers attempted to block police access by sitting across a road, but officers removed them forcibly, as depicted in the video.
This is happening as "Israel" faces international pressure to restrict settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank. The outpost, located in a rural region, violates both Israeli and international laws.
Occupation and pettiness
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich revealed late Thursday that the Security Cabinet has approved the authorization of five West Bank settlement outposts and the imposition of additional sanctions on the Palestinian Authority.
Smotrich mentioned that the five outposts are Evyatar, Givat Assaf, Sde Efraim, Heletz, and Adorayim.
The announcement followed a break in the security cabinet's meeting during which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu consulted with advisors due to concerns that the approvals might escalate tensions with the United States.
"The Security Cabinet authorized one outpost for every country that unilaterally recognized Palestine as a state in the last month," Smotrich pointed out.
It is worth noting that the occupied West Bank was divided into three administrative sections under the 1993 Oslo Accords, with Area A managed by the Palestinian Authority, Area B under alleged shared sovereignty, and Area C – the largest area, accounting for around 60% of the occupied Palestinian territories – under full Israeli administrative and security control.
