In recent months, Israel has already been expanding the construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, legalized outposts and made significant bureaucratic changes to its policies in the territory.
The Israeli government announced this Sunday, the 15th, the resumption of a land regulation process in a large part of the occupied West Bank which, in practice, could result in the advancement of Israeli control of the region.
This involves the resumption of “land title settlement” processes, which have been frozen in the West Bank since the Middle East War in 1967. When Israel begins the process of registering land in a given area, anyone with a claim to the land must present documents proving ownership.
In recent months, Israel has already been expanding the construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, legalized outposts and made significant bureaucratic changes to its policies in the territory to strengthen its rule and weaken the Palestinian Authority.
In a statement today, Israel’s Foreign Ministry said, without offering evidence, that the Palestinian Authority was “advancing illegal land registration procedures in Area C” and that today’s decision was made for greater transparency.
According to the Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now, the initiative likely amounts to a “mega land grab” from the Palestinians. “This move is very dramatic and allows the state to gain control of almost all of Area C,” said Hagit Ofran, director of Peace Now’s Settlement Watch program, referring to the region that makes up 60% of the West Bank and is under full Israeli military control, in accordance with agreements reached in the 1990s with the Palestinians.
Ofran also said that the process for proving ownership is rarely transparent, so any land that goes through the registration process in areas currently owned by Palestinians will likely come under the control of the Israeli state. “Palestinians will be sent to prove ownership in a way they will never be able to do,” Ofran told the Associated Press.
The office of the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, also in a statement, called the decision “a serious escalation and a flagrant violation of international law”, which amounts to a “de facto annexation”. He called on the international community, especially the United Nations (UN) Security Council and the United States, to intervene immediately.
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