Former French Ambassador to the Israeli occupation from (2003-2006), Gérard Araud, confirmed that what is happening now in the West Bank, with the settlers' assaults and their attempts to seize Palestinian lands, is "outrageous" and constitutes "ethnic cleansing".

In a television interview, Araud said that "the settlers are taking advantage of the current situation to assault Palestinians as usual, to get rid of some communities and villages."

He added that "the scandal is that Europe does not take a strong stance, while the reality is that the settlers are doing this to make the two-state solution impossible," stressing that "what is happening is very dangerous."

"European countries must act firmly and strongly," he maintained. 

🔴 Gérard Araud, ancien ambassadeur de France en Israël :

"Ce qui se passe actuellement en Cisjordanie est scandaleux. Ce que les colons sont en train de faire, c'est un nettoyage ethnique".
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— Gaston Lefranc φ 🇵🇸 ☭ (@GastonLefranc) June 23, 2024

IOF hand power over West Bank to pro-settler officials under Smotrich

Israeli occupation forces (IOF) discreetly transferred substantial legal authority in the occupied West Bank to Israeli extremist groups ganging up under the far-right Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

A directive published by the Israeli army on its website on May 29 shifts the responsibility for numerous bylaws within the so-called "Civil Administration", the Israeli body governing the West Bank, from the military to public employees working under Smotrich at the Security Ministry.

Smotrich and his gangs have long viewed control over the "Civil Administration", or at least significant portions of it, as a way to extend Israeli sovereignty in the occupied West Bank. Their ultimate aim is to achieve direct control by the central government and its ministries. This transfer reduces the likelihood of legal restrictions on settlement expansion and development.

Israeli politicians have long aimed to find methods to permanently put their hand on the occupied West Bank, which they occupied in 1967 and where millions of Palestinians reside.

Michael Sfard, an Israeli human rights lawyer, said as quoted by Times of Israel, “The bottom line is that [for] anyone who thought the question of annexation was foggy, this order should end any doubts. What this order does is transfer vast areas of administrative power from the military commander to Israeli civilians working for the government.”

Read more: UN Special Rapporteur slams Israeli use of Palestinian as human shield