196 illegal outposts currently functioning in the West Bank
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BBC published an analysis report discussing the establishment of illegal outposts in the West Bank which, despite being illegal, are rapidly increasing and gaining legal status as the regime attempts to expand its occupation.
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People assess the damage inflicted on a house during an Israeli raid in the West Bank city of Jenin on July 5, 2024. (AFP)
"Israel" has killed over 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 7 during its ongoing daily bombardment of the Strip. Ultimately, the occupation's aggression extended beyond the borders of the small piece of land, with increasing violence and operations being carried out in the West Bank.
The BBC published an analysis on Tuesday concerning Israeli outposts in the occupied territories, including an interview with Palestinian grandmother Ayesha Shteyyeh, recounting how a settler pointed a gun at her head last October, forcing her out of her home of 50 years.
Ayesha told the public broadcaster that the armed threat stemmed from "Israel's" violent campaign of harassment and intimidation in 2021, following the establishment of an illegal settler outpost close to her home in the West Bank.
The news outlet reported that the number of outposts has significantly increased in previous years, highlighting that there are currently at least 196 outposts in the West Bank. 29 of these settlements were established last year, marking the highest number ever recorded.
Outposts are essentially settlements that lack boundaries, and are deemed illegal under both Israeli and international law. They manifest in various forms, such as farms, house clusters, and even groups of caravans.
In their analysis, the BBC reviewed hundreds of satellite images of the West Bank to determine and verify the number of outposts, their location, and the year they were set up, especially since official figures do not exist. In addition, to showcase that outposts are still in use in the West Bank, the news outlet also reviewed social media posts, publications from the occupation government, and other news sources.
The thorough probe suggests that approximately 89 of 196 planned outposts have been built since 2019, with some linked to the increased settler violence and harassment against Palestinians, a growing occurrence since the beginning of the Israeli aggression in Gaza.
“Whenever you put outposts illegally in the area, it brings tensions with the Palestinians… living in the same area,” former commander of the IOF, Avi Mizrahim, told the BBC.
The existence of Israeli outposts
The analysis says that outposts are illegal under Israeli law, claiming however that lack official planning from the regime. However, despite the illegal status, there is no evidence that the government is attempting to prevent the rapid rise of these settlements.
According to the BBC World Service analysis, documents reveal that organizations with close ties to the occupation government have funded the establishment of new illegal outposts both in terms of land and finances.
The World Zionist Organization (WZO) has a Settlement Division that has managed the illegal occupation and annexation of Palestinian land since 1967. The organization considered itself "an arm of the Israeli state," especially since its division is financed through public funds.
The British broadcaster analyzed contracts obtained by Peace Now, showing that the Settlement Divison has repeatedly assigned land where outposts have been built. However, according to the WZO, the building of any structure is prohibited, and land should only be used for grazing or farming. Contrary to these claims, satellite images depict that at least illegal outposts were built in at least four cases.
Amana is another key factor aiding in the building of the illegal structure, loaning hundreds of thousands of shekels for their establishment, as disclosed by two documents.
Since its founding in 1978, the organization has worked closely with the Israeli government to build settlements in the West Bank, as well as the construction of outputs in previous years.
"In the last three years… one operation we have expanded is the herding farm [outposts]," Amana's CEO Ze'ev Hever said in a leaked recording of a 2021 executives meeting.
“Today, the area [they control] is almost twice the size of built settlements.”
The legal status of the outposts is gradually changing under Israeli law, with the occupation government beginning the legalization process of at least six outposts, and granting complete legal status for at least six others.
Ayesha Shtayyeh's forced displacement by settler Moshe Sharvit
Aside from the presence of outposts in the West Bank, the news broadcaster also investigated the settler who threatened Ayesha Shtayyeh with the use of open-source intelligence.
The extremist settler was revealed to be Moshe Sharvit who, back in February, expressed the effectiveness of outputs in annexing land when he hosted an open day at his outpost.
“The biggest regret when we [settlers] built settlements was that we got stuck within the fences and couldn’t expand,” he told the crowd. “The farm is very important, but the most important thing for us is the surrounding area.”
Sharvit claimed he controlled 7 square kilometers of land, occupying an area that is significantly greater than many large urban settlements in the West Bank that consist of populations in the thousands.
Peace Now's Hagit Oran asserted that the main objective for some settlers who establish and live on outposts is to gain control of land through the annexation and occupation of Palestinian communities.
“Settlers who live on the hilltop [outposts] see themselves as ‘protecting lands’ and their daily job is to kick out Palestinians from the area,” she said.
Upon establishing his outpost, Ayesha told BBC that Sharvit's harassment and intimidation campaign began in 2021.
The Palestinian woman recounted when Sharvit and his fellow settlers would arrive in an all-terrain vehicle in pastures her husband, Nabil, used for several decades to graze his goats to chase away the animals.
“I responded that we’d leave if the government, or police, or judge tells us to,” Nabil said.
“He told me: ‘I’m the government, and I’m the judge, and I’m the police.’”
“It reaches a point where Palestinians don’t have anything anymore. They can’t eat, they can’t graze, can’t get water,” the head of the Palestinian Authority’s Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, Moayad Shaaban, said concerning land access.
'He hasn't left anything for us'
BBC filmed Ayesha and Nabil returning to their home in December 2023 to collect their belongings, two months after they were forcefully evicted by the extremist settler through repeated threats following October 7.
Upon arriving at their home, they found the place had been ransacked with cupboards hanging from their hinges and sofas slashed with a knife.
“I didn’t hurt him. I didn’t do anything to him. What have I done to deserve this?” Ayesha said.
Shortly following their arrival, Sharvit arrived in a buggy before the occupation forces and army arrived, forcing the couple to leave the area.
“He hasn’t left anything for us,” Ayesha told the news outlet.
