Smotrich's covert plan for quiet West Bank takeover leaked: NYT
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The Israeli Finance Minister intends to shift authority in the West Bank from the Israeli military to pro-settler officials within the Security Ministry to avoid international scrutiny.
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Illustrative: Palestinian villagers inspect the damage after Israeli settlers rampaged through the West Bank village of Duma in April, torching homes and vehicles. (AFP)
The far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich was reportedly recorded telling supporters of the settler movement that the government is involved in a covert effort to alter how "Israel" administers the West Bank, as per a report on Friday citing a recording of the minister of the Religious Zionist party.
The New York Times indicated that the recording was from an event earlier in the month where Smotrich, who also serves as a minister in the Security Ministry, told supporters that the aim was preventing the West Bank from becoming part of a Palestinian state.
A spokesperson for Smotrich confirmed the authenticity of the recording, which the newspaper said was provided by a researcher from the Peace Now anti-settlement group who attended the event on June 9.
Smotrich to deceive international community on West Bank governance
In the recording, Smotrich detailed his intentions to shift authority from the Israeli military to pro-settler officials within the Security Ministry, leveraging the extensive powers granted to him through his Religious Zionism party's coalition agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud.
Smotrich stated, "We established a distinct civilian system," noting that, to avoid international scrutiny, the government has permitted the Security Ministry to maintain its involvement in the process, as reported by the Times.
“It will be easier to swallow in the international and legal context,” he went on to say. “So that they won’t say that we are doing annexation here.”
Smotrich also revealed that Netanyahu was "full on" with the plan.
IOF hand power over West Bank to pro-settler officials under Smotrich
Israeli occupation forces 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 transfers vast areas of administrative power from the military commander to Israeli civilians working for the government.”
Smotrich's latest coup
The calamitous move marks the latest coup for Smotrich, who secured roles as finance minister and a minister in the Security Ministry following a coalition agreement between his far-right party and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party.
The "Civil Administration" primarily oversees planning and construction in Area C of the West Bank, which comprises 60% of the occupied Palestinian territories. Additionally, it enforces regulations against "unauthorized construction", meaning that if a permit is not issued by the Israeli army in Area C, the IOF would confiscate any construction tools found and demolish any new structures built without authorization.
Palestinians in Area C of the West Bank live in constant fear of being expelled from their homes and lands by Israeli authorities. In the first three months of 2023, Israeli forces have already forcibly displaced 218 Palestinians through demolitions in Area C. This figure represents more than one-third of the 594 Palestinians forcibly displaced there throughout the entire year of 2022, according to United Nations (UN) data.
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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.
According to the accords, Area C, the only contiguous portion of the occupied West Bank with the most fertile land and valuable natural resources, was meant to be gradually transferred to Palestinian sovereignty, but this has never occurred.
Instead, Area C is now occupied by over 400,000 settlers, who control 70% of the area and prohibit Palestinian development.
Dive deeper
The transfer of legal authority, which was hiding in plain sight in "Israel", is the result of a prolonged effort by extremist politicians to gain many of the legal powers previously held by the military.
These laws pertain to various areas, including building regulations, agriculture, forestry, parks, and bathing locations. Legal experts have long cautioned that shifting these powers from military to political control could lead "Israel" to violate its international legal obligations further.
Once in government, Smotrich swiftly approved thousands of new settlement units, legalized previously unauthorized outposts, and made it more challenging for Palestinians to build homes and travel freely.
Reports in Israeli media indicate that US officials have privately considered imposing sanctions on Smotrich due to his destabilizing actions in the West Bank, where he resides in a settlement deemed illegal under international law.
Netanyahu has increasingly leaned on the support of Smotrich and other extremist groups within his coalition government following the departure of Benny Gantz from "Israel’s" emergency war cabinet amid schisms over the strategy of war on Gaza and efforts to secure the release of Israeli captives.
Smotrich has openly expressed his ambition to establish a stronger presence in the Ministry of Security to advance his policy agenda, dismissing the significance of this move as merely procedural.
In April, Smotrich appointed Hillel Roth, a longtime ideological ally, as a deputy in the "Civil Administration", tasked with overseeing building regulations in settlements and outposts.
Roth, who previously lived in Yitzhar, a West Bank settlement known for its history of violence and extremism, has ties to Smotrich’s Religious Zionist party through his involvement with Bnei Akiva.
According to Sfard, this transfer of authority signifies that legal control in the West Bank now rests with a structure led by an Israeli minister focused solely on advancing Israeli interests.
Furthermore, Sfard highlighted that while the head of the "Civil Administration" traditionally reports to military command, Roth, as a settler, now answers directly to Smotrich.
Sfard's perspective aligns with a legal analysis published by three Israeli jurists last year, cautioning that shifting authority away from the military could legally constitute annexation. They warned that Smotrich prioritizes advancing the interests of Israeli settlers in the West Bank over the well-being of the Palestinians.
Mairav Zonszein, a senior analyst for Israel-Palestine at Crisis Group, said as reported by The Guardian, “The big story is that this is no longer ‘creeping annexation’ or ‘de facto annexation’, it is actual annexation."
“This is the legalisation [and] normalization of a long-term policy. Smotrich is basically re-establishing the way in which the occupation works by taking a large part out of the hands of the military," he stressed.
“Half the people he has brought in to the defense ministry are from.... Regavim. The same people who worked at Regavim to disposes Palestinians in Area C are now in government positions,” he concluded.
Israeli occupation forces have been conducting violent, daily raids in several West Bank cities since October 7, arresting and brutally killing Palestinians, including children, in addition to bulldozing roads.
