Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement & Annexation Report. To subscribe to this report, please click here.

November 7, 2025

1. Tenders Issued for New Neighborhood in Geva Benaymin Settlement
2. Israel Advances Plans for 1,985 New Settlement Units
3. Israel Delivers Demolition Notices to Entire Village of Umm Al Kheir in South Hebron Hills
4. Israel Allocates $12 Million to Deepen Control Over West Bank Archaeology Sites
5. Settler Violence & The Olive Harvest
6. Bonus Reads

---

Tenders Issued for New Neighborhood in Geva Benaymin Settlement

Peace Now reports that on November 4th the Israeli Housing Ministry published tenders for the construction of 342 new settlement units – establishing a new neighborhood in the Geva Benyamin (aka Adam) settlement. The new construction will expand the settlement northward towards the Jaba’ bedouin community, and connect the settlement to an outpost established by settlers in February 2025. Since the outpost was established, settlers have routinely and violently attacked the Jaba’ community.

Peace Now warned: 

“Since the beginning of 2025, tenders have been published for a total of 5,667 housing units in settlements – an all-time record and about 50% more than the previous peak year, 2018, when tenders were published for 3,808 units. If the tenders published this year are built, these homes would add roughly 25,000 settlers to the West Bank.”

Israel Advances Plans for 1,985 New Settlement Units

Peace Now reports that on November 5th, the High Planning Council advanced plans for the construction of 1,985 new settlement units across the West Bank.

Since the beginning of 2025, including the plans slated for approval this week, Israel has advanced a total of 28,195 settlement units — setting a record for annual numbers. See Peace Now’s records here.

The plans that received final approval this week include:

• 133 new units in the Kfar Tapuach settlement, located south of Nablus.
• 80 units in the Etz Efraim settlement, located south of Qalqilya and on the Israel-annexed side of the Separation Barrier.
• 178 units in the Ganei Modi’in settlement, located on the Israel-annexed side of the Separation Barrier in the northern West Bank.

The plans which were deposited for public review this week include:

• 720 units in the Avnei Hefetz settlement, located just east of Tulkarem;
• 568 units in the Einav settlement, located east of Tulkarem and east of the Avnei Hefetz settlement.
• 48 units in the Etz Efraim settlement (in addition to the plans which received final approval).
• 258 units in the Rosh Tzurim settlement, located south of Bethlehem in the Etzion settlement bloc.

Israel Delivers Demolition Notices to Entire Village of Umm Al Kheir in South Hebron Hills

On October 28th, the Israeli Civil Administration delivered demolition notices to 13 structures (including 11 homes) in the village of Umm al-Khair in the South Hebron Hills – a village that is almost entirely surrounded by Israeli settlements and violent outposts. The residents were given four days to appeal the demolition notices, which were issued due to lack of Israeli-issued building permits (the buildings are over a decade old).

These notices come only a few weeks after the Jerusalem District Court attempted to temporarily stop settlers from establishing another new outpost literally next to homes in the Umm Al-Khair.

For an in-depth background of Umm al-Khair is its struggle to stay on its land despite settler and state violence, see Peace Now’s reporting and 972 Magazine’s repository of stories on the village – including several written by Awdah Hathaleen, a native of Umm Al-Khair who was murdered by an internationally sanctioned settler earlier this year (a settler who is facing no legal repercussions for the murder).

Israel Allocates $12 Million to Deepen Control Over West Bank Archaeology Sites

Emek Shaveh reports that on October 26th the Israeli government allocated an additional $12million (NIS 33.6 million)to renovate and strengthen Israeli control over archaeological sites in the West Bank. The government had previously allocated $33 million (NIS 120 million) in 2023 to the same project as well as a special budget of NIS 32 million for the Sebastia site alone.

Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu said: ““will not wait for the formal imposition of sovereignty over the West Bank.” As a reminder, in July 2024 the Israeli government gave the Civil Administrative sweeping powers over archaeological sites in Area B of the West Bank.

Emek Shaveh said in a statement:

“The government decision to redirect funds from other offices to sites in the West Bank reflects the ministers’ true priorities. At a time when health, welfare, and education systems have been severely impacted by two years of war and soaring defence spending, the government is diverting critical resources to advance the settlers’ long-standing agenda: expanding control over territory through archaeology.

By declaring more areas as archaeological sites “off limits” to Palestinians and developing them as tourist attractions to draw mainstream Israeli visitors into the settlements, the government is instrumentalising antiquities both as a bureaucratic tool for displacement and annexation, and as a means of shaping a biblical-nationalist narrative that excludes other histories and denies Palestinian connection to the land.”

Settler Violence & The Olive Harvest

Settlers have continued to terrorize Palestinians harvesting olives during the 2025 harvest season, with virtually no recourse or accountability. Over the course of October, OCHA recorded the highest monthly number of Israeli settler attacks since OCHA began documenting such incidents in 2006, documented 260 attacks – an average of 8 per day. In addition Palestinians continue to suffer from increasingly restrictive Israeli policies that limit access to agricultural land located near settlements and/or the Separation Barrier. Adding to the heightened settler violence, the Israeli government has undertaken a deportation campaign against international solidarity activists who, for years, have accompanied Palestinians during harvest season as a protective presence.

Since October 21st, there have been at least 104 attacks, 20 of which were directly related to the olive harvest, including the following incidents of note over the past two weeks:

• Mikhmas: On October 20th, settlers from a newly established outpost attacked a group of Palestinians and solidarity activists in the bedouin villages of Mikhmas and al-Ara’ara, located north of Jerusalem. The settlers threw stones at the Palestinians and set a house and olive trees on fire. Then, on October 23rd settlers cut the water pipelines which serviced Mikhmas. On October 25th, settlers violently attacked Mikhmas, burning six structures and injuring Palestinians and solidarity activists. Many residents of Mikhmas have left the village under the coercive displacement policies of the state and the escalating violence of the settlers – which goes unpunished. OCHA has documented 
• Al-Mughayyir: On October 24th dozens attacked al-Mughayyir during the night, setting cars on fire. This is the 43rd time this year that settlers have attacked Al-Mughayyir, a town that is surrounded by seven outposts.
• Samu, South Hebron Hills: Settlers were filmed ransacking a farm and torturing livestock – including baby lamb – in a small village in the South Hebron. Six lambs were killed and four were severely injured. 
• Beit Ummar: Wafa News reports that on October 29th settlers cut down approximately 50 olive trees and stole construction equipment. Israeli settlers and soldiers have carried out more than 250 attacks on Palestinian olive farmers since the harvest began earlier this month, according to the Ramallah-based Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission
• Qarawat Bani Hassan: On November 4th, settlers attacked Palestinians harvesting olives alongside a large group of volunteers (including American volunteers). As filmed by the harvesters, settlers flew a drone directly into the crowd of activists injuring one, and then proceeded to shoot live ammunition into the air, threatening to shoot the volunteers while they attempted to retrieve the drone. Haaretz reports the settlers were part of the security unit of the nearby Revava settlement.

The continued violence prompted the following statement by Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator:

“Reports of attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians and their property across the West Bank continue. Many are related to Palestinians’ attempts to harvest their olive crops. Palestinians have been killed and injured. Their homes and property damaged. Their livestock attacked. More trees have been damaged and more communities affected this year than in the previous six years. The failure to prevent or punish such attacks is inconsistent with international law. Palestinians must be protected. Impunity cannot prevail. Perpetrators must be held accountable.”

Bonus Reads

1. “The Business of Apartheid: What Companies and Investors Should Know” (AFSC, 10/30/25)
2. “How one road and an Israeli settlement could end dreams for this Palestinian city” (Los Angeles Times, 10/24/25)
3. “Israel’s Education Commissar Wants to Force Settler Indoctrination in Schools” (Haaretz, 10/29/25)
4. “Smotrich proposes weekly protest in ‘Sovereignty Square’ to push for Judea and Samaria annexation” (World Israel News, 10/26/25)

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement & Annexation Report. To subscribe to this report, please click here.

October 24, 2025

1. Knesset Votes to Advance Two West Bank Annexation Bill
2. Israel Advances 248 New Settlement Units
3. Settlers Take Over Cave in South Hebron Hills & Are Building New Outpost
4. Settler Terrorism Targets the Olive Harvest
5. Bonus Reads

---

Knesset Votes to Advance Two West Bank Annexation Bill

Two annexation bills got a preliminary nod from the Israeli Knesset this week.

The first, a bill calling for annexation of “settlement spaces”, passed its preliminary reading with the Knesset voting to advance the bill with a bare majority of 25-24. The bill will now proceed through three further rounds of voting. It is not totally clear how expansive the bill is as it calls to annex “settlement spaces in Judea and Samaria” but does not map out what that means (other than the fact it does not include Palestinians). Area C of the West Bank – where the majority of Israeli settlements are – is some 60% of the West Bank, but outside of Area C there is expansive amounts of Israeli infrastructure (roads, services, etc) serving the settlements in addition to settlement outposts.

Notably, Likud Minister Yuli Edelstein broke ranks with his Party to vote in favor of the bill despite opposition from Likud’s head of party, Prime Minister Netanyahu. Other members of the Likud party abstained from voting. Edelstein, who was Speaker of the Knesset from 2013-2020, was later removed from his role on the powerful Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee as a result of his vote and Prime Minister Netanyahu issued a statement calling Edelstein “disgruntled”. The Likud Party released a statement explaining why it opposed the bill, making it clear it supports annexation but wants to achieve it differently. The statement read:

“Real sovereignty will not be achieved through a showpiece law for the record, but through proper work on the ground and creating the political conditions for recognition of our sovereignty.”

A second bill calling for annexation of the Maale Adumim settlement also passed the preliminary reading vote with a large majority vote of 32-9.

The Knesset’s actions elicited a strong reaction from the Trump Administration, which has been engaged in near constant shuttle diplomacy to Israel over the past week in the hopes of preventing Israel from completely walking away from the Gaza ceasefire deal. The Knesset held its vote on the annexation bills while U.S. Vice President JD Vance was in Israel, leading Vance to tell reporters he was “insulted” by the decision to hold the vote, saying the “policy of the Trump administration is that the West Bank will not be annexed by Israel.” On his way to Israel, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also confirmed the U.S. does not support Israel’s annexation of West Bank land “right now.” President Trump made his position on annexation clear to Time Magazine in a recent interview which was published this week, saying:

“It won’t happen. It won’t happen. It won’t happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries. And you can’t do that now. We’ve had great Arab support. It won’t happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries. It will not happen. Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened.””

In addition to the White House’s opposition, 46 of 47 Democratic senators signed a letter opposing Israeli annexation of the West Bank, settlement expansion, and any measures that would block Palestinian statehood. Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman was the only Democrat who did not sign the letter.

Qatar also issued a statement condemning the vote.

Israel Advances 248 New Settlement Units

Peace Now reports the Israeli High Planning Council (a body within the Israeli Defense Ministry which currently oversees construction planning in Areas C of the West Bank) met on October 22nd to consider the following plans to expand settlements:

• One plan for 102 new settlement units in the Rotem settlement, located in the northern Jordan Valley;
• One plan for 4 new settlement units in the Shiloh settlement, located in the northern West Bank in a string of Israeli settlements reaching from the Green Line to the Ariel, Eli, and Amichai settlements that bisect the northern West Bank and reach through to the Jordan Valley;
• Two plans for a total of 128 new settlement units in the Eli settlement, located between Nablus and Ramallah in the northern West Bank as part of a string of Israeli settlements reaching from the Green Line to the Ariel, Eli, and Amichai settlements that bisect the northern West Bank and reach through to the Jordan Valley;;
• Two plans for a total of 14 new settlement units in the Givat Zeev settlement north of Jerusalem.

Peace Now reminds:

“Since November 2024, the Higher Planning Council has been holding weekly meetings to advance housing projects in the settlements. The shift to a weekly approval process not only normalizes construction in the territories but also accelerates it. Since the beginning of 2025, including the plans slated for approval this week, the council has advanced a total of 25,129 housing units. All time record.”

Settlers Take Over Cave in South Hebron Hills & Are Building New Outpost

On October 20th a group of settlers broke into a locked cave in the village of Sarura, located in the Masafer Yatta region of the South Hebron Hills. Settlers proceeded to move furnishings, belongings, and food into the cave clearly planning to stay. The settlers sprayed graffiti and erected a Start of David, showing their domination of the area. The settlers proceeded to violently threaten Palestinians and solidarity activists who approached the surrounding land. 

The owner of the cave attempted to contact Israeli authorities but it took several days for the military to issue an order closing the area to settlers, though the order was not enforced and so the settlers remained. The military issued a second order affecting a larger area, and in response, the settlers left the cave only to return hours later with construction equipment. The settlers are now expanding their new outpost. 

Caves are historic and cherished parts of the Palestinian community in Masafer Yatta. In fact, Palestinians started a concerted effort to preserve, restore, and defend the caves from settler takeover via an initiative called “Youth of Sumud.” Volunteers with Youth of Sumud have restored several caves, including many caves in Sarura one of which the group used as a community center to host education events and other programs for youth and women. The Israeli army issued a demolition order against the community center in 2022.

Settler Terrorism Targets the Olive Harvest

Over the second week of the olive harvest season, settler terrorism has continued to intensify with OCHA documenting 86 settler attacks across 50 villages and towns since early October. Those attacks have injured at least 112 Palestinians and damaged more than 3,000 trees and saplings. Haaretz published a harrowing, interactive expose on the reign of terror settlers have been allowed to carry out, showing just how effective settler violence is at coercing Palestinians into leaving their lands. 

Some of the settler violence over the past week included:

• October 19th: Settlers attacked Turmus Ayya, violently clubbing a defenseless elderly woman while she lay on the ground and injuring many others. Settlers set Palestinian cars aflame. Settlers scared off olive harvesters and then began picking olives themselves. After the video of the attack on the elderly woman went viral, it was reported that the Israeli police issued an arrest warrant for the settler filmed attacking the woman.
• October 19th: Setters attacked the village of Taybeh, closing off the villages’ main entry/exit road.
• October 20th: A group of female settlers calling themselves “Hill Girls” (perhaps referencing the notoriously violent Hilltop Youth settler terror group) filmed themselves harvesting olives in Palestinian groves located west of Bethlehem.

In Gaza, where the olive harvest will be devastated for the third year – Palestinians estimate that Israel has destroyed 1 million olive trees, leaving only 100,000 trees left. The head of the Palestinian Olive Council, Fayyad Fayyad, told Drop Site:

“There is no olive season this year. We estimate that nearly one million of Gaza’s 1.1 million olive trees have been destroyed.” In 2022, Gaza produced about 50,000 tons of olives. This year, Fayyad said, the total will be well under a thousand. “The destruction is deliberate,” he said. “Israel aims to eliminate the agricultural sector, including olives. What remains are scattered trees—not groves, not production.”

One olive grower told Drop Site through tears:

“The olive season was our happiest time of year. We would gather to pick, sing, and eat together. Now that joy is gone—like everything else this war has taken.”

Another Palestinian olive farmer said:

“We could hardly water the trees. The land was next to Israeli tank positions for months….For my father, it’s not just oil—it’s identity. We want to taste oil from our own trees, not from somewhere we don’t trust. The olive tree tells us we are still alive.”

Bonus Reads

1. “West Bank: Impunity deepens the occupation amid increasing restrictions on aid” (Norwegian Refugee Council, 10/23/25)
2. “Can Israel annex the West Bank if the US says no?” (Al Jazeera, 10/24/25)

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement & Annexation Report. To subscribe to this report, please click here.

October 17, 2025

1. Settlers Establish New Outpost to Encircle Umm Al Kheir, Court Pauses Move-In
2. Eviction Date Looms for Six Families Facing Displacement from Homes in Silwan
3. As The Olive Harvest Starts, Settler Terrorism Reaches New Heights
4. Israeli Commitment Against West Bank Annexation is Not in Final Ceasefire Deal
5. International Crisis Group Report: “Sovereignty in All but Name: Israel’s Quickening Annexation of the West Bank”
6. Bonus Reads

---

Settlers Establish New Outpost to Encircle Umm Al Kheir, Court Pauses Move-In

Two months ago, Israeli settlers began building yet another outpost surrounding the tiny Palestinian village of Umm al Khair in the South Hebron Hills, almost completing the encirclement of the 200 people who live in village by the Carmel settlement and its illegal outposts. The settlers cleared land and moved in caravans into the area, within spitting distance of Palestinian homes, as part of their years-long effort to expand their control of land in the area and compel/coerce the displacement of Umm al-Kheir. It was during the settlers illegal preparation of the land for this new outpost that Awdah Hathaleen, a prominent activist in the area and a protagonist in the critically acclaimed documentary No Other Land, was shot and killed by the internationally sanctioned settler Yinon Levy.

On October 12th, the Jerusalem District Court issued an order temporarily barred settlers’ from inhabiting the new outpost while the Court considers the underlying legal challenge which seeks to compel settlers to remove the caravans from the land. Settlers promptly violated the Court order, and moved more caravans into the area the very next day.

Peace Now said in a statement:

“For months, all enforcement authorities have known full well about the massive, blatantly illegal construction project taking place on the village’s land — and not only did they do nothing to stop it, they actually secured and assisted it in various ways. It is depressing and sad, though not surprising, that it takes a court order to make the army and the police do their duty. We hope the order will give the residents of Um al-Kheir, who are suffering under the settlers’ ongoing harassment, some space to breathe and live normal lives.”

Eviction Date Looms for Six Families Facing Displacement from Homes in Silwan

Six Palestinian families living in the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem are facing an impending eviction date ordering them to vacate their longtime homes sometime between October 19 and November 4. If the families do not agree to their own displacement, Israeli police will remove them by force. At this point, all legal remedies have been exhausted and the Nasser, Rajabi, Shweiki, and Odeh families are set to be forcibly displaced under at the behest of Israeli settlers and the facilitation of Israeli legal courts, a system Ir Amim describes as: “proceedings [that] are underpinned by structural discrimination rooted in Jewish supremacy and a system rigged against Palestinians from the outset, which denies them equal access to justice.”

For more background on these cases, see Peace Now’s reporting.

Peace Now reports that 16 families have already been evicted from the Batan al-Hawa section of Silwan – 6 in this year alone – with settlers facilitating their displacement and taking up residence in the vacated homes. There are five additional cases affecting dozens of families that are at various stages in the Jerusalem Magistrate Court.

Peace Now said in a statement: 

“This is a real emergency. If the government does not intervene, and if pressure is not brought to bear on it to act, we may witness in the coming weeks families literally thrown out into the street and settlers taking their place. This is a terrible injustice, based on discriminatory laws and on the ongoing exploitation and marginalization of East Jerusalem residents. The dispossession of Palestinians from their legally purchased homes in Silwan, under the guise of realizing a “right of return” for Jews, is an indelible stain on the State of Israel. The government can and must stop the forced expulsion of an entire community—the responsibility lies on its shoulders.”

As The Olive Harvest Starts, Settler Terrorism Reaches New Heights

The Palestinian olive harvest is now underway, and as in past years presents a massive target for violent settlers to terrorize Palestinians attempting to work their land – and in fact settler violence has rapidly increased from already high levels. Between 7 and 13 October, OCHA documented 71 Israeli settler attacks against Palestinians, 36 of which were directly connected to the olive harvest. As a result of the documented attacks, 99 Palestinians were injured and 1 killed. These attacks have included:

• On October 8th settlers were throwing stones at Palestinian cars near the village of Deir Jarir, located near Ramallah. One Palestinian was shot and killed when settlers opened fire on a group of people who had gathered to chase off the stone-throwers. This is the 12th settler attack on Deir Jarir this year, according to OCHA.
• On October 9th, settlers raided the village of Atara, near Ramallah, damaging homes and cars. Settlers established a new outpost near Atara in August 2025, and have since used the outpost as a launching point to routinely attack Atara. OCHA has counted at least 8 attacks so far.
• On October 10th, settlers attacked the Palestinians harvesting olives near Beita, resulting in an injury to an AFP photographer. Settlers further seized harvesting equipment and burned 12 vehicles.
• On October 12th, settlers staged a large-scale attack on the village of Burqa during which they cut down over 800 fruit trees (including olive trees, citrus trees, and grapevines).
• On October 13th, settlers accompanied by Israeli forces attacked Beit Fajjar, near Bethlehem. Settlers assaulted a family of six which was attempting to harvest grapes, and later assaulted the emergency responders who came to assist the victims. Settlers used sticks, molotov cocktails and dogs to injure the family, and later burned their vehicle.
• On October 13th, settlers attacked the village of Ein Yabrud, near Ramallah, and burned down a house. 
• On October 16th, the two different groups of Paelstinians harvesting olives near Burin were attacked by settlers from the Yitzhar settlement. The harvesters were chased off and their farming equipment was stolen.

Israeli Commitment Against West Bank Annexation is Not in Final Ceasefire Deal

According to leaked reports, an earlier version of the Trump ceasefire deal included a commitment that Israel would not annex the West Bank. Despite Trump’s press conference weeks before where he said publicly that he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank, ultimately the commitment was not included in the final ceasefire deal.

Nonetheless, The Times of Israel reports that the Knesset is set to reconvene from its summer break and immediately take up a few bills that would affect the annexation of the West Bank. A Knesset insider told The Times of Israel:

“there is a majority in the Knesset to annex today…The reason it’s not on the agenda is because Netanyahu has made it very clear that he’s not going to support anything of the sort. You can say it’s because of Trump. You can say it’s because of his own fear of global isolation or a regional war or whoever knows what it is that he’s thinking. But if there was a secret ballot in the Knesset today, a majority would definitely annex.”

The source further told the outlet that Netanyahu will find a way to postpone voting on the annexation bills, without outright opposing them, until the next election in October 2026.

International Crisis Group Report: “Sovereignty in All but Name: Israel’s Quickening Annexation of the West Bank”

The International Crisis Group (ICG) published a new report entitled, “Sovereignty in All but Name: Israel’s Quickening Annexation of the West Bank.” The report responds to European states offering recognition to the State of Palestine, a recognition with ICG calls a “strategy that should also have teeth,” taking seriously that “annexation is not a future threat – it is already under way.” The report urges international actors to do what they can to “halt the further consolidation of Israel’s annexation and to begin the difficult work of persuading Israel to reverse course.”

The Executive summary of the report ends:

“The impediments to a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict are longstanding and immense, and a body of informed commentary argues that they are indeed insurmountable. Perhaps they are, but there is no world in which the further progress of annexation will produce a better result for the Palestinian people – or, for that matter, for Israelis. Israel may never alter its posture in the West Bank, but if outside actors play a long game and act concertedly, they will optimise their chances of changing its behaviour. Absent that, the status quo, which denies the Palestinian people not just a state, but also basic rights, will only become further entrenched.”

Bonus Reads

1.  “Sweeping Israeli actions transform West Bank in shadow of Gaza war” (Washington Post, 9/28/25)
2. “Ben-Gvir’s Aide Suspected of Preventing Weapon Seizure of Settler Who Shot at Palestinians” (Haaretz, 9/29/25)
3. “Israel detains two Palestinian children in Hebron under claims of ‘espionage‘” (Middle East Eye, 10/1/25)
4. “The Trump-Netanyahu Peace Deal Promises Indefinite Occupation” (The Intercept, 10/1/25)
5. “Israeli bulldozers in West Bank carve up hopes for Palestinian state” (Reuters, 10/2/25)
6. “Bureaucratic Antics for Three West Bank Villages Show How an Israeli Annexation Began Long Ago” (Haaretz, 10/12/25)
7. “At This West Bank Checkpoint, ‘It’s Not Just Movement That’s Blocked. It’s Time Itself’” (Haaretz, 10/13/2025)
8. “Israeli settlements close in on West Bank herding community” (Al-Monitor, 10/10/25)
9. “Despite war’s end, Smotrich calls for renewed Jewish settlement in Gaza” (Ynet, 10/14/25)

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement & Annexation Report. To subscribe to this report, please click here.

August 29, 2025

1. Settlers Continue to Terrorize & Take Over South Hebron Hills Communities
2. Senior Israeli Officials Appear to be Making Rounds to Illegal Outposts
3. The IDF’s Collective Punishment of Al-Mughayyir Spurs Fears of West Bank Genocide
4. Bonus Reads

---

Settlers Continue to Terrorize & Take Over South Hebron Hills Communities

Over the past week there have been several reported settler attacks on Palestinian communities in the South Hebron Hills, including one brutal attack on Palestinians and Israeli activists in the village of Qawawis that left seven people wounded. Masked settlers were filmed assaulting people and damaging property with huge clubs.

In addition to perpetrating unabated violence, settlers have also established several new outposts in the South Hebron Hills area, furthering their de facto annexation and the violent, coerced displacement of Palestinians. 

One of the new outposts was established just meters from Palestinian homes in the village of Umm Al-Khair, the site of the recent murder of Awdah Hathaleen by the internationally sanctioned settler Yinon Levy. The new outpost has been established on the area of land Yinon Levy was illegally clearing before he shot and killed Hathaleen. Peace Now reports settlers have brought in four pre-fab mobile homes on the land and it appears settlers intend to bring in at least two more caravans there.

The new outpost threatens to bisect the lands and neighborhoods of Um Al-Khair, pinching off the northern part of the village from the southern part. Tariq Hathaleen, a resident of Um Al-Khair and the brother of Awdah, told Haaretz:

“I think these trailers have been placed there mainly to pressure the community…It’s not as if they lack land. There are millions of dunams around, but they’re coming to this spot to pressure the community and the people to leave. That’s the aim of these trailers.”

Peace Now said in a statement: 

“This is the peak of the Israeli government’s mistreatment of the residents of Um al-Kheir. After decades of home demolitions, the denial of permits and infrastructure, and escalating violence from settlers and the army, comes the harsh blow of establishing a permanent outpost in the middle of the village. The settlers who erected the illegal outpost overnight did so on behalf of the authorities, with direct support from the Har Hevron Regional Council, the army, the police and the government. Since the formation of the Smotrich-Ben Gvir government, about 90 Palestinian communities have been displaced by violent settlers who established nearby outposts. The aim of the new outpost in Um al-Kheir is clear: to drive the residents from their land.”

In addition – Palestinian news sources report three new outposts were established on lands belonging to the village of Birin in the South Hebron Hills. Settlers have spent the better part of two months preparing the land for establishing an outpost, by clearing roads, destroying crops and intimidating Palestinians out of the area.  

Senior Israeli Officials Appear to be Making Rounds to Illegal Outposts

Senior Israeli security officials are helping advance the mission of Smotrich’s Settlement Administration to advance the de facto annexation of the West Bank by solidifying the presence of outposts across the West Bank.i

On August 13th the commander of Israel’s West Bank police district Moshe Pinchi and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir,  visited an illegal outpost called “Ma’aleh Tidhar” known to be associated with the violent Hilltop Youth movement. The men were photographed next to violent settler Elisha Yered – who was arrested under suspicion of murder in 2023 but released. Yered later tweeted:

“To reach Ma’aleh Tidhar, a strategic outpost established about a month and a half ago to link the eastern and central parts of the Gush Etzion settlement bloc, you have to climb a rough dirt track that barely a 4×4 can manage…But the national security minister, Itamar, did it today along with MK Limor Son Har-Melech, and even brought with him the West Bank district’s officers to show his firm stand with us.”

On August 24th, two high ranking Israeli IDF officers (Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir & Central Command Commander Avi Bluth) visited the illegal outpost called Maoz Shaul, located near the Avnei Hefetz settlement in the northern West Bank.  It appears the visit was not meant to catch press attention, but nonetheless indicates the IDF’s knowledge of the new and illegal outpost, and its support for its continued presence in the area.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also is a Minister in the Defense Ministry, celebrated the occasion saying in a tweet that the visit shows the IDF’s ““excellent cooperation” with his work to legalize outpost, and that “The farms lead the way in pioneering settlement in Judea and Samaria, acting as a vital shield for many communities there, as well as for the Sharon region [on the coastal plain] and other parts of the country.”

The IDF’s Collective Punishment of Al-Mughayyir Spurs Fears of West Bank Genocide

The Israeli army uprooted over 10,000 olive trees during a three day siege on the Palestinian village of Al-Mughayyir northeast of Ramllah, in what is a forthright declaration of collective punishment of the entire village following an alleged terror attack near the Adei Ad settlement. During the IDF’s siege on the village, +972 Magazine reports residents lived under curfew while every home in the village was raided, businesses were closed and the village was sealed shut. The IDF caused significant destruction to the village streets, infrastructure, homes, and businesses.

IDF Central Command head Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth made it clear that Israel’s policy is that of collective punishment, saying at a press briefing:

“Every village and every enemy must know that if they carry out an attack against the residents [settlers], they will pay a heavy price…They will experience a curfew, they will experience a siege, and they will experience shaping operations…We are now getting a grip on this village…The first mission is to hunt [the assailant] … The second is to carry out shaping operations here, and to ensure that everyone is deterred — not only this village, but every village that tries to raise a hand against the residents [settlers].”

Following Bluth’s remarks, +972 Magazine reports Yesh Din and ACRI (two Israeli human rights groups) have filed a criminal complaint with the Military Advocate General, calling for an investigation into war crimes.

Kareem Jubran, director of the field research department of the Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem, told Haaretz: 

“Our greatest fear – and we emphasized this when we [B’Tselem] presented our genocide report – is that every small incident will now immediately cause an insane Israeli response. We saw that last week in al-Mughayyir. Every trigger can produce genocide in the West Bank, too. What happened here is the proof of that.”.

Deputy Council Head of the village, Abu Na’im, told Haaretz: 

“That is their goal, for us to leave. It is perhaps a different tactic from Gaza, but the goal is the same.” 

Bonus Reads

1. “West Bank Monthly Snapshot – Casualties, Property Damage and Displacement | July 2025” (OCHA, 8/22/25)
2. “Chairman Lawler Introduces Bill to Repeal Inactive Restrictions on Building U.S. Facilities in Israel” (Press Release, 815/25)
3. “Fears Israeli forces turning Sebastia into garrison to ‘Judaize’ site” (The New Arab, 8/27/25)
4. “’Neglect and Apathy’ | Israel’s UNRWA Closures Leave Hundreds of Palestinian Students in East Jerusalem Without Schools as Summer Ends” (Haaretz, 8/28/25)
5. “As World Leaders Push for a Palestinian State, in the West Bank, ‘Annexation Is Reality’” (Haaretz, 8/27/25)
6. “Will Israel’s West Bank Settlement Plan Ignite the Third Intifada?” (Haaretz, 8/25/2025)
7. “Tiny Patch of West Bank Land Fuels Dreams of Greater Israel” (New York Times, 8/25/2025)
8. “How Israel Is Funding Settler Violence To Overrun Palestinian Villages in the West Bank” (New Lines Magazine, 8/27/2025)

 

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement & Annexation Report. To subscribe to this report, please click here.

July 31, 2025

1. Another Palestinian Community Displaced by Settler Terrorism
2. Settlers Takeover Ein Samiya Spring, Creating Water Crisis for Dozens of Ramallah-Area Villages
3. Nu’man Faces Demolition As Decades of “Silent Transfer” Reach Breaking Point
4. Smotrich Calls Gaza Settlements a “Realistic Work Plan” as Activists March to Gaza
5. Beloved South Hebron Hills Activist Shot Dead By Sanctioned Settler
6. Bonus Reads

---

Another Palestinian Community Displaced by Settler Terrorism

On July 27th,over 100 residents of the Deir Alla bedouin community fled their village under the escalating, violent encroachment and coercive threats of Israeli settlers. Many families from Deir Alla had previously left the village, located in the Jordan Valley, and a violent series of settler attacks over the last week coerced the remaining few into leaving.

On Wednesday July 23rd, settlers illegally built a new outpost using an abandoned home inside of the village. Residents notified the IDF, which visited the settlers the next day but did not make the settlers leave. That night after the army left, Haaretz reports about 30 settlers attacked Deir Alla – vandalizing homes and threatening residents with arson and expulsion. On Friday night the settlers followed through on their threats and set fire to buildings in Deir Alla. Israeli authorities did respond to this attack, detaining and later releasing 12 settlers. Then, on Saturday the settlers attacked again, vandalizing more homes, destroying solar panels and the local water network, and stealing goods. Later that day, settlers returned to the village and threatened residents – telling them to abandon their homes or face violence. Under these conditions, residents of Deir Alla were expelled from the village. Once the Palestinians had left, settlers destroyed all structures in the abandoned village.

Settlers Takeover Ein Samiya Spring, Creating Water Crisis for Dozens of Ramallah-Area Villages

Following years of attempts and weeks of escalating attacks, on July 21st settlers appear to have succeeded in taking control over the Ein Samiya spring and a nearby pool, located near Ramallah. The settlers also vandalized and damaged pumping stations which transferred water from the spring to at least 30 nearby Palestinian communities. The Jerusalem Water Undertaking told Haaretz that the damage to the pumping stations has resulted in a complete shut down of the pumps and pipes, which has already resulted in prolonged water outages affecting 32 Palestinian communities. The settlers’ seizure of the spring has created a water crisis.

Haaretz reports the settlers have renamed the spring and launched a crowdfunding campaign to support and advance their theft of resources in that area. Several settlers have posted videos from the spring, celebrating their theft and announcing plans to divert water to the spring from a nearby stream. The effort raised at least $33,000 USD in its first days.

Nu’man Faces Demolition As Decades of “Silent Transfer” Reach Breaking Point

Ir Amim reports the imminent threat of demolition facing the Palestinian village of Nu’man, located in the expanded borders of Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem. After decades of fighting the Israeli bureaucracy for the ability to remain on their land and in their homes, on June 10th Israeli authorities delivered demolition notices to each and every home in Nu’man.

Ir Amim writes:

“To live in Nu’man is to face a slow, silent form of erasure—one cloaked in law, bureaucracy, and strategic neglect. The residents’ struggle to remain is part of a broader one—in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza—against a system designed to make Palestinian life in the land impossible.”

Smotrich Calls Gaza Settlements a “Realistic Work Plan” as Activists March to Gaza

What was once considered a fringe idea to build settlements in Gaza promoted by a small number of fringe settlers has now been embraced and advanced by the Israeli government – with the threat of annexation being used as part of Israel’s negotiations with Hamas over the end of Israel’s genocide. 

Last week, the Knesset held a conference advocating for and planning to take up Donald Trump’s idea to transform the Gaza strip into a “Gaza Riviera.” The Knesset discussed a plan, that, according to The Guardian, provides for the construction of 850,000 settlement units, construction of hi-tech “smart cities” that trade cryptocurrency, and a metro system that runs across the territory.

Speaking at a conference commemorating the anniversary of Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, Israeli Finance Minister Smotrich said there is a “realistic work plan” to build settlements in Gaza, saying: “We did not sacrifice these prices to transfer Gaza from one Arab to another. Gaza is an inseparable part of the Land of Israel.”

Shortly after Smotrich’s remarks, 22 members of the Knesset (including two Cabinet Ministers) signed a letter to Defense Minister Katz asking that he permit a large group of settlers to enter the northern Gaza Strip in order to begin planning for the construction of a settlement.  The Nachala settler group, which was organizing the group and letter, put out a statement on X saying: 

“The demand is being made as part of the call to settle the northern sector as an immediate first step toward reconquest, expulsion, and settlement of the entire Gaza Strip…The northern border was conquered and expelled — now is the time to settle.”

The next day, hundreds of settlers organized by Daniella Weiss and the Nachala settler group marched towards the Gaza border.  Weiss has previously said that she has a list of 1,000 Israeli families ready to move to the Gaza strip to reestablish settlements there.

Beloved South Hebron Hills Activist Shot Dead By Sanctioned Settler

Awdah Hathaleen – a prominent Palestinian activist in the South Hebron Hills – was shot and killed by an armed Israeli settler who was reportedly attempting to destroy a main water pipeline serving Palestinian homes in Umm Al-Khair, located in the South Hebron Hills. Levy was detained by Israeli authorities, but quickly released. According to his lawyers, Levy claims he fired in self-defense. Video from the incident shows Levy firing wildly, and +972 Magazine says its analysis of video from the event shows Levy attacked the residents.

Hathaleen was a key activist and advocate bringing attention to the severe suffering and violence Palestinian villages in the South Hebron Hills are facing because of state-backed Israeli settlers trying to expel Palestinians from the land. Hathaleen participated in the globally acclaimed film “No Other Land” depicting the struggle of communities there and the routing violence of settlers.

Yinon Levy is a notoriously violent settler who built an illegal outpost called Meitarim Farm on lands near Masafer Yatta in the South Hebron Hills. Canada, France, the UK, and the European Union have current sanctions placed on Levy for his involvement in violence (including the violent expulsion of the Zanuta community) and illegal settlement activity; the U.S. previously had sanctions on Levy, but President Trump reversed those sanctions when he took office.

Bonus Reads

• “Humanitarian Situation Update #310 | West Bank” (OCHA, 7/31/25)
• “The Israeli Knesset passed a motion supporting the annexation of the West Bank. Here’s what that means.” (Mondoweiss, 7/25/25)
• “Israel’s destroyer-in-chief in Gaza lives in a settlement home marked for demolition” (+972 Magazine, 7/30/25)
• “The humanitarian crisis facing 42,000 forcibly displaced Palestinians in the West Bank” (Mondoweiss, 7/28/25)
• “The Violent Gaza-ification of the West Bank” (Time, 7/23/25)
• Thread: “Hilltop youth are fundraising for the development of an outpost in Area B of the West Bank. This is part of a greater trend. More background in the thread.” (Yehuda Shaul, 7/27/25)

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about Israeli settlement activity this week.

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

September 20, 2024

1. Israeli Supreme Court Orders Immediate Eviction in East Jerusalem, Fears of Mass Expulsion Grow
2. Residents of Zanuta Return to Land to Find Destruction, Israel “Offers” Permanent Displacement as Solution
3. UN Adopts on Resolution Calling for Israel to End Illegal Occupation of Palestinian Territory
4. Blinken Calls on Israel to Changes Rules of Engagement in the West Bank
5. Bonus Reads

---

Israeli Supreme Court Orders Immediate Eviction in East Jerusalem, Fears of Mass Expulsion Grow

On September 10th, the Israeli Supreme Court unanimously rejected a final appeal submitted by the Ghaith family (15 people), affirming the District Court’s ruling to evict the family from their longtime home in favor of the Ateret Cohanim settler organization. The Ghaith family was ordered by the Court to immediately leave their home located in the Batan al-Hawa section of the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem, where 85 families face dispossession (details). Underscoring the struggle Palestinians face in Silwan to remain in their homes and on their land,  in addition to the eviction cases threatening mass displacement,  Israel is also carrying out an accelerated demolition campaign targeting Palestinians in Silwan over the past year.

Ir Amim reports that since October 7th there has been a dramatic spike in court decisions to evict Palestinians at the behest of settlers, with 14 families having been dispossessed in the past six months – including the Shehadeh family who were dispossessed of their home just one month ago. More – this is the second major case in the past two months that has seen a Palestinian family thrown out of their homes in Silwan – – setting an increasingly entrenched precedent for the cases that are still pending. All of these cases hinge on the settlers’ use of the discriminatory law (the 1970 Legal and Administrative Matters law) and the Court’s continued acceptance of that law as a weapon by which to replace Palestinians with Jews. The law provides a right for Jews to reclaim property that was owned prior to 1948, but abandoned during war. Palestinians are provided no such right and further, as Ir Amim explains, “to the contrary, the 1950 Absentee Property Law enshrines that Palestinians who were forced to abandon their homes and lands in what became Israel after the war of 1948 can never retrieve them.”

Ir Amim writes:

“Although the Israeli government often characterize these cases as private real estate disputes, they are rather part and parcel of a systematic campaign aimed to cement Israeli control over the Old City Basin, the most religiously and politically sensitive part of Jerusalem. These measures are reinforced by a constellation of settler-operated tourist sites, which together, serve to alter the character of the space and forge a ring of Israeli control around the Old City. This creates an irreversible reality on the ground that deliberately erodes conditions for an agreed political resolution on Jerusalem and the rest of the territory. Such actions severely violate the individual and collective rights of Palestinians in the city, while carrying an acute humanitarian impact on the affected families.”

Noting that both the Ghaith family case and the Shehadeh family case (which one month ago concluded wit the dispossession of the family in favor of settlers) have been ruled on by conservative Israeli Justice Sohlberg, Peace Now says in a statement:

“If this eviction is carried out, God forbid, it will be an injustice and a crime against a vulnerable population under occupation in East Jerusalem, leaving an indelible stain on the State of Israel. The government can and must stop the forced displacement of an entire community and the responsibility lies on its shoulders. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) specifically referred in its opinion to the system of discriminatory laws and the Israeli settlement policy in East Jerusalem and determined that it is a violation of international law. Although the matter is political and the legal process is only the tool for its realization, it is important to emphasize that Judge Solberg’s decision stands in contrast to the decisions of other judges in the Supreme Court who have granted permission to appeal in similar cases. It seems that Judge Solberg is using his powers to prevent the discussion from reaching judges whose position is different from his own, precisely two days before the state’s position on the issue is supposed to be given to the court.”

Residents of Zanuta Return to Land to Find Destruction, Israel “Offers” Permanent Displacement as Solution

It has been nearly a year since the residents of Zanuta – a remote herding community in the South Hebron Hills – has been forcibly displaced from the lands under the shadow of continuous settler violence and lack of any action by the IDF to stop the terrorism, which only escalated in the wake of October 7th. In July 2024 the Israeli High Court of Justice ruled that the State of Israel must facilitate their safe return to the land. Villagers started returning to the area in August to discover that in the intervening months, settlers have been allowed to enter the area and destroy nearly all of the houses, the small school, and the village’s health clinic. The village appeared ransacked. Only days after their initial return, the village was attacked by Yinon Levy (a settler under international sanctions for his involvement in violence) while the Israeli police and army watched.

With the legal assistance of Haqel, the villagers submitted a request with COGAT to restore and protect the village’s buildings. Instead of offering that small measure of justice, the Civil Administration responded by “offering” the villagers a chance to relocate their lives to land 2.5km away – land that Israel has declared to be “state land” but land that is adjacent to Areas A  and B (not situated solidly in Area C, as the current village is). The letter also stated that the Civil Administration will not permit any new construction in the current village and intends to carry out enforcement against buildings that lack Israeli permits in 30 days.

Haqel issued the following statement in response to the absurd proposal:

“the state is threatening the residents with destruction of the remainder of the demolished building in the village if the residents accept the offer to evacuate the village and move to the area adjacent to areas A and B. There is no doubt that the state’s proposal at the present time, precisely with the return of the residents to their village by order of the High Court after the previous violent expulsion, is intended to formalize and complete the deportation of the residents of the village of Zanuta where the settlers began their efforts to ethnically cleanse Area C of its Palestinian residents. The state ignores any historical and proprietary connection of the residents to the village who have in their possession documents proving their rights to hundreds of dunams of private land in the village and forcing them to be displaced to an area in which they have no property rights and where there are other Palestinian landowners present.”

UN Adopts on Resolution Calling for Israel to End Illegal Occupation of Palestinian Territory

On September 18th, the  United Nations General Assembly voted to adopt a resolution demanding that Israel end “its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” within 12 months. The resolution further calls for member states to cease transferring arms to Israel that may be used in the occupied lands. Only 14 countries voted against the measure, including Israel and the United States. Kenneth Roth, founder and former director of Human Rights Watch, suggests that:

“The US government’s response suggests a refusal to recognize the new legal reality in which Israel now finds itself….The US government’s response to the general assembly resolution reflected (at least feigned) ignorance of the legal paradigm shift that has occurred. The Biden administration accused the general assembly of “ignoring Israel’s very real security concerns”, but that misses the point of the ICJ ruling. Those security concerns must be met from within Israel, not through occupation.”

While the resolution is non-binding, it provides decisive clarity that the majority of the world (124 out of 198) holds Israel’s occupation is illegal and should end. The resolution’s language is largely informed by the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice some two months ago.

Blinken Calls on Israel to Changes Rules of Engagement in the West Bank

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called upon Israel to change its rules of engagement in the West Bank after an American citizen, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, was shot in the head and killed by an IDF soldier while participating in a protest against the Evyatar outpost in the Palestinian village of Beita. 

Eygi’s family said in a statement:

“Aysenur, an activist and volunteer, was peacefully standing for justice as an international observer and witness to Palestinian suffering. She was taking shelter in an olive grove when she was shot in the head and killed by a bullet from an Israeli soldier. This cannot be misconstrued as anything except a deliberate, targeted and precise attack by the military against an unarmed civilian.”

The family’s statement helps put the spotlight on the ongoing struggle of Palestinians from the area of Beita to stop the retroactive legalization of a violent outpost, which was established illegally by settlers on a strategic hilltop named Mount Sabih, located just south of Nablus on land historically belonging to nearby Palestinian villages Beita, Yatma, and Qablan. Palestinians have held weekly protests against the government’s plans and the continued presence of settlers in the area ever since – protests which have resulted in no fewer than seven Palestinian protesters dying as a result of the harsh and violent actions by the IDF to quash the protests. Then, on July 8, 2024, the Israeli government declared 16 acres (66 dunams) of land as Israeli “state land” in order to pave the way for the legalization of the Evyatar outpost. The declaration is the result of three years of “work” by Smotrich’s Settlements Administration to examine the status of the land in order to find a way for the state to take control of the land in order to legalize the outpost. The declaration was made one week after the Israeli Security of Cabinet decided in favor of legalizing the Evyatar outpost along with four other outposts.

Blinken said:

“We’ve long seen reports of the security forces looking the other way when extremist settlers use violence against Palestinians. We’ve seen reports of excessive force by Israeli security forces against Palestinians. It’s not acceptable. It has to change. And we’ll be making that clear to the senior-most members of the Israeli government.”

Bonus Reads

1. “IDF expands Judea and Samaria security guards authority” (JNS)
2. “A plan to liquidate northern Gaza is gaining steam” (+972 Magazine)
3. “Annexation, Expulsion and Israeli Settlements: Netanyahu Gears Up for Next Phase of Gaza War” (Haaretz)
4. “What Settler Violence Is Doing to Israel’ (The Atlantic)
5. “How extremist settlers in the West Bank became the law” (Financial Times)
6. “How the Israeli settlers movement shaped modern Israel” (The Conversation)
7. “Israel’s Existential Threat from Within” (NYT The Daily Podcast)

 

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about Israeli settlement activity this week.

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

May 17, 2024

1. Haqel Details High Court Order for the Return of Bedouin in South Hebron Hills
2. Calls to Build Settlements in Gaza Grow Louder Within Israeli Government
3. In First, Human Rights Groups Sue Irish Investment Fund Over Settlement Profiteering
4. New York Times Profiles Israel’s Historic & Current Failure to Check Settler Extremism
5. Further Reporting on Settler Activities This Week
6. Bonus Reads

---

Haqel Details High Court Order for the Return of Bedouin in South Hebron Hills

As covered in last week’s report, the Israeli High Court of Justice  ruled in favor of returning 360 Palestinians to their homes in Khirbet Zanouta, a herding community which was forcibly expelled from their lands in the South Hebron Hills by extreme settler violence. The case of Khirbet Zanouta was recently profiled in a longform New York Times investigation, which highlights the human rights group Haqel and details how the Israeli legal system is designed to protect settlers and operated to deny Palestinians access to justice.

In a new brief about the ruling, Haqel explains that the order demands three things of the State:

1. An outline of all measures planned to ensure the safe return of residents to the villages of Zanuta and Um Darith, focusing on their security and the protection of their property and livestock. This also applies to the petitioners in an additional petition heard jointly with Haqel’s petition. 
2. The State justify the absence of a dedicated emergency contact center for the petitioners or their representatives. 
3. An explanation of the absence of police response to incidents following complaints by petitioners and the lack of evidence collection.

Explaining the significance of the ruling, Haqel says:

“The illegal construction in outposts and settlements is an organized crime on a huge scale. It’s time for the law enforcement authorities to do their “This decision sets an important precedent for cases involving the protection of communities at risk of forced displacement and for those communities who were expelled from their homes and villages. Haqel will closely evaluate the actions of the State on the ground and the means in which they plan to ensure the return of the villagers to their homes.” 

Calls to Build Settlements in Gaza Grow Louder Within Israeli Government

Haaretz reports that many Israeli elected officials, including Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, joined a march to Gaza on May 14th (Israeli Independence Day) to demand the removal of PAlestinians from Gaza and Israeli settlement of the strip.

Ben-Gvir called the removal of Palestinians and Jewish settlement the “true solution” to Israel’s current war on Gaza. At a speech at the march, he said:

“First, we must return to Gaza now! We are coming home to the Holy Land! And second, we must encourage emigration. Encourage the voluntary emigration of the residents of Gaza. It is moral!”

Settler leader Daniella Weiss, whose organization – Nahala – organized the march and appeared on-stage with Ben Gvir, told the protestors:

“Instead of this smoke [rising over Gaza] we want to see Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip.”

In First, Human Rights Groups Sue Irish Investment Fund Over Settlement Profiteering

On 15th May, Global Legal Action Network (GLAN), Al-Haq and Sadaka – the Ireland Palestine Alliance submitted a complaint against the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), alleging that the fund’s investments in 11 companies that are linked to Israeli war crimes and are therefore liable for seizure by Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB). The complaint outlines how revenue generated by activity of these 11 companies supports both Israel’s illegal settlements and its ongoing Gaza offensive.

The groups say this is the first petition of its kind anywhere in the world,

Shawan Jabarin, the General Director of Al-Haq, said:

“The illegal settlements are one key part of Israel’s broader apartheid regime imposed on the Palestinian people. ISIF must face legal accountability for investing in companies complicit in the crime of apartheid. It is imperative that the Irish government carries out an immediate action plan to cut all of Ireland’s economic ties profiting from this heinous crime”. ​

New York Times Profiles Israel’s Historic & Current Failure to Check Settler Extremism 

The New York Times published a three-part article investigating the rise of ultranationalist politics in Israel, and how the failure to enforce the rule of law in the West Bank is at the heart of that story. The article starts with the rise and current role of Bezalel Smotrich, opening with the revelation that the head of Israel’s Central Command, Maj. Gen. Yehuda Fuchs (Fox), has been critical of Smotrich for the ways in which he undermines law enforcement efforts in the West Bank, particularly help illegal settlement construction circumvent punishment – saying that enforced against illegal settlement construction has dwindled “to the point where it has disappeared.” This current situation – whereby an Israeli extremist who has previously organized to subvert Israeli law is now in charge of enforcing that law – is traced back to the founding of Israel.

In response to the article, Smotrcih posted on X that the New York Times engages in blood libel against Israel.

Further Reporting on Settler Activities This Week

OCHA reports:

• “On 9 May, a number of families from Mantiqat Shib al Butum in the firing zone of Masafer Yatta were granted access by Israeli forces to their agricultural land located near the settlement of Mitzpe Yair for the first time since February 2024 but found that 600 olive trees planted on 60 dunums of land had been vandalized due to sheep grazing by Israeli settlers. A fence was also destroyed and a shed erected, also presumably by Israeli settlers. On 7 May, Israeli settlers cut a wire feeding electricity to 50 houses in ِAl Mazra’a al Qibliya village, in Ramallah governorate, causing a blackout for ten hours.” 
• “On 13 May, the last two remaining families Ein Samiya herding community (Ramallah), comprising 19 people including 11 children, were forced to leave their community amid attacks by Israeli settlers and moved to Kafr Malik village. Settlers stole the empty tents, a vehicle and fodder and have remained in the area, prohibiting the families from returning. As of today, all 29 households in the community (156 people) have become displaced. Across the West Bank, since 7 October, some 233 Palestinian households comprising 1,385 people, mostly herding families, including 654 children, have been displaced amid settler violence and access restrictions.”

The PLO National Bureau for Defending the Land and Resisting Settlements reports the following illegal settler activities over the past week:

• Settlers welded the doors of the old Hebron Municipality’s building located in the Ain Al-Askar area as a prelude to seizing it. The case is reportedly being considered by the Courts. 
• Setters erected a new settlement outpost and placed sheep and fodder in it, 700 meters from the Ras Ain Al-Auja Bedouin community in the Jordan Valley.
• Settlers illegally built a new road on lands in the village of Husan in the “Wadi Qadis” area, extending from the Ain Qadis spring all the way to the Ain al-Taqa spring near Bethlehem.

Bonus Reads

1. “The Dubious Land Deal Threatening East Jerusalem’s Armenian Quarter’ (The Nation)

 

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about Israeli settlement activity this week.

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

May 10, 2024

1. Israeli High Court Order Investigation into Unauthorized Construction Financed by Settler Regional Counciln
2. Israeli Supreme Court Suspends Four Evictions in Sheikh Jarrah
3. Smotrich Threatens to Defy Netanyahu and Start Settlement Construction
4. Gallant Calls for Establishment of a New Settlement East of Ariel
5. Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Returning Palestinians to Khirbet Zanouta
6. IDF Demolishes “Threatening” Palestinian Building Following Regavim Petition
7. Yesh Din Wins Case After Citing International Sanctions on Settler
8. Israel Tracks 1.9% Rise in Settler Population Over Last Year
9. Bonus Reads

---

Israeli High Court Order Investigation into Unauthorized Construction Financed by Settler Regional Council

On May 9th the Israeli High Court ordered a criminal investigation into the illegal construction in the Hayovel outpost, located near the Eli settlement in the northern West Bank. This is the first time the High Court has ordered a criminal investigation into illegal settlement construction. The order was the result of the Court’s six year consideration of a petition filed by Peace Now, which included evidence that a new residential neighborhood was built in the Hayovel outpost without any approved plan and without building permits. The petition also documented the involvement of the Binyamin Regional Council and its funding of the illegal activity. 

Following the 2017 publication of its investigative report “Unraveling the Mechanism Behind Illegal Outposts” – which included a comprehensive investigation of how the various authorities are involved, assist, and finance the construction of illegal outposts in the West Bank – Peace Now filed many petitions with the High Court demanding an investigation into illegal outpost construction and the state’s complicity. The State stalled the Court’s consideration of these cases by promising to create and direct a unit tasked with investigating these complaints. It’s unclear if the unit was ever established, and if it was what progress it made, but the unit was formally dissolved by Bezalel Smotrich when he assumed authority over West Bank construction. The Court’s decision this week comes in light of Smotrich’s dissolution of the investigative unit.

The investigation ordered into Hayovel this week is the first petition that has been ruled upon, potentially setting precedent for the rest, which include four similar petitions filed by Peace Now regarding illegal construction in the Haroeh outpost, the Karnei Shomron settlement, the Shvut Rachel settlement, and the Sde Boaz outpost.

Adv. Michael Sfard, one of the lawyers who represented Peace Now in this petition, said: 

“The illegal construction in outposts and settlements is an organized crime on a huge scale. It’s time for the law enforcement authorities to do their job. It’s a shame that judicial intervention was needed to make it clear to the police and the prosecutor’s office that no one is above the law, even if they are settlers.”

Peace Now said in a statement: 

“The illegal construction in the settlements is not a marginal phenomenon. There is a fraudulent mechanism involving official bodies and public funds, through which a small and organized group of settlers builds settlements, sets facts on the ground and imposes its vision on an entire country. Law enforcement authorities have been defending settler criminality for years, and today the court ordered them to stop this lawlessness.”

Israeli Supreme Court Suspends Four Evictions in Sheikh Jarrah

On May 9th, the Israeli Supreme Court annulled the evictions of three Palestinian families – Hammad, Daoudi and Dajani – from their longtime homes in Sheikh Jarrah. 

According to lawyer and Jerusalem expert Daniel Seidemann, the Court relied upon precedent set in its 2022 decision to overturn the eviction of four other families in Sheikh Jarrah, the al-Kurd, al-Qassem, Iskafi and al-Ja‘ouni families. In that case, the High Court ruled that final ownership of the land has not been determined and must be revisited, and that until that determination is made (via the settlement of title and registration processes), the families are permitted to remain in their homes as legally “protected tenants,” paying rent into an escrow account managed by lawyers involved in the case – funds that won’t go to the settlers who claim ownership unless and until the title and registration processes conclude that the land does, in fact, belong to the settlers.

As a reminder: With its annexation of  East Jerusalem following the 1967 war, Israel suspended the process of land registration and settlement of title in East Jerusalem. Israeli lawmakers have pointedly stated over the past two years their intentions to reinitiate these processes, and reports have suggested that Israel has begun to do so – secretively – in Sheikh Jarrah. The launching of an Israel-run process of registering ownership of land in East Jerusalem land will have far-reaching consequences for Palestinians, who have not had a formal, legal avenue for registering land ownership with the Israeli government since East Jerusalem was annexed by Israel in 1967 – meaning, for example, that if a property owner has died, his/her heirs have had no legal way to register as the current owners. As a consequence, such a process is liable to be used against Palestinians by settlers.

Smotrich Threatens to Defy Netanyahu and Start Settlement Construction

Smotrich has continued his criticism of Netanyahu over what he sees as a de-facto freeze on settlement construction, as detailed in last week’s settlement report. In a new letter to the Prime Minister this week, Smotrich gave a four day window to receive a response to his criticism threatening that, “Since the authority is mine, please notify me within four days that you are not allowing construction…If you do not send notification, I consider myself entitled to begin construction.”

Gallant made the speech while attending the opening of an expanded IDF checkpoint that leads from Israel into the West Bank along Route 5.

Gallant Calls for Establishment of a New Settlement East of Ariel

In a speech on May 9th, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called for the establishment of a new settlement east of the Ariel settlement and support for building more roads for settlers in the norther West Bank. Gallant said, “logically, a significantly larger city should be developed [east of Ariel]….[the area is] the most central junction that allows us to divert the population of Israel to the east,” 

Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Returning Palestinians to Khirbet Zanouta 

OCHA OPT reports that on May 2nd the Israeli Supreme Court has ruled in favor of returning 360 Palestinians to their homes in Khirbet Zanouta, a herding community which was forcibly expelled from their lands in the South Hebron Hills by incessant settler violence. The ruling ordered the Israeli authorities to ensure the ability of the community to safely return to their land and homes.

One of the settlers who has led violent attacks on Khirbet Zanouta is Yinon Levi, who founded the illegal outpost Meitarim Farm near the herding community. Levi was recently sanctioned by the United States and others.

IDF Demolishes “Threatening” Palestinian Building Following Regavim Petition 

The Israeli Civil Administration demolished a two-story building built along Route 398 – a settler bypass road – in the southern West Bank, a road which connects the nearby settlements of Tekoa, Kfar Eldad, and Nokdim to Jerusalem. The petition submitted by Regavim argued that the building was illegal and that it posed “a clear and imminent threat to thousands of motorists.”

Roi Drucker, a Field Coordinator for Regavim told the Jerusalem Post: 

“We are encouraged when our efforts achieve results, and hope that small but significant victories like these will empower the Israeli government to change its approach and take a proactive stance toward protecting our Israel’s national interests and the security of its citizens…This road cannot be allowed to turn into a replica of Huwara. Israeli motorists must not be sitting ducks on the roads of Judea and Samaria.”

Yesh Din Wins Case After Citing International Sanctions on Settler

Yesh Din provided an update on a case it filed in December 2023 seeking the removal of a barrier that settlers had installed on an access road that Palestinian landowners relied upon to reach their land. The case had not progressed until Yesh Din supplemental response to the Court submitting that the United Kingdom recently sanctioned a settler, Zvi Bar Yosef, whos illegal outpost is located near the illegal barrier. In a small success (as there are hundreds of similar barriers installed by the military and settlers after October 7th that significantly harm Palestinians right to movement and property), the barrier was removed from the access road in March 2024.

Yesh Din said in a statement:

“Road barriers have become a widespread tool used by the Israeli military all over the West Bank since October 2023. Under the pretense of security needs – the military is violating Palestinians’ freedom of movement and severely harming everyday life of millions in the West Bank for over six months. The fact that once challenged, some obstructions (whether placed by the military or civilians) can be removed, proves that at least in some cases, they are arbitrary and unnecessary. More importantly, this case is an example of the impact that sanctioning violent settlers and outposts in the West Bank can have on the protection of human rights on the ground. The international community can and should take consequences such as these into account when making decisions regarding this issue.”

Israel Tracks 1.9% Rise in Settler Population Over Last Year

The Israel Central Bureau of Statistics published new demographic information showing a 1.9% growth in the West Bank settler population over the past year (figures do not include East Jerusalem settlements, which Israel illegally annexed).

Bonus Reads

1. “West Bank: Israeli Forces’ Unlawful Killings of Palestinians” (Human Rights Watch)
2. “A West Bank village feels helpless after Israeli settlers attack with fire and bullets” (ABC News)
3. “Israel razes entire Bedouin village to expand a highway” (+972 Magazine)
4. Thread on X regarding Noam Federman, a settler sanctioned by the Uk (Kerem Navot on X)

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about Israeli settlement activity this week.

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

September 16, 2022

1. Israel Quickly Advancing Plans to Build Har Gilo West Settlement to Encircle Al-Walaja
2. Settlers Attack, Injure Palestinian in South Hebron Hills; IDF Arrests Him
3. Bonus Reads

---

Israel Quickly Advancing Plans to Build Har Gilo West Settlement to Encircle Al-Walaja

Israel is rapidly accelerating the planning of the Har Gilo West settlement, located on geopolitically very sensitive – land on Jerusalem’s southern border. First, on September 11, the Israeli High Planning Council approved a plan to widen a road leading to the Har Gilo settlement, a road that is integral to the planning of the new Har Gilo West settlement. Then, on September 14th the High Planning Council announced that it would convene to consider the Har Gilo West plan on November 7, 2022. If built, Har Gilo West would – among other consequences – involve the construction of a new section of Israel’s separation barrier, a section that will complete the encirclement and isolation of the beleaguered Palestinian village of Al-Walajah (which is already surrounded by the Israel’s separation barrier on three sides).

The plan for Har Gilo West was deposited for public review in July 2022 (after having been approved for deposit almost two years prior, in October 2020), the Israeli High Planning Council Council has treated the Har Gilo West settlement plan as merely an expansion of the existing Har Gilo settlement. In actuality, Har Gilo West is territorially non-contiguous with the existing Har Gilo settlement and, if built, will have part of al-Walaja’s built-up area and the Separation Barrier lying between the two settlements. For all intents and purposes it represents the construction of a brand new settlement on Jerusalem’s southern border. 

When, and if, the High Planning Council convenes to discuss objections filed against the plan, it will likely have to deal with an objection against the plan submitted jointly by the Israeli NGOs Ir Amim and Bimkom, in cooperation with Palestinian residents of Al-Walajah. The objection details its devastating impact on the community and its surroundings, specifically detailing how “the establishment of Har Gilo West will deplete al-Walaja’s remaining land reserves in Area C, preventing the village’s further expansion, while dispossessing community residents of their private land. Hedging in al-Walaja with settlements and the barrier will likewise jeopardize the community’s freedom of movement, disconnecting it from the surrounding Palestinian environs.”

In addition to involving the encirclement of al-Wallaja and representing a brand new settlement, the initial plan for 560 units in Har Gilo West is part of a larger plan to construct around 1004 units in the new settlement, extending its borders right up to the Jerusalem municipal boundary, with additional dire consequences for Palestinians. Peace Now explains:

• The settlement would sever the connection between the lands of al-Walajah and the lands of Battir, the latter of which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The land allocated for the settlement is considered a “buffer zone” for Battir’s prized terraces, which are meant to help protect the heritage site from an ecological, scenic and hydrological standpoint.
• The land on which Har Gilo West is meant to be built is some of the only uninhabited and fertile land reserves for Bethlehem.

Ir Amim and Bimkom – who have previously filed a joint objection to the Har Gilo West plan –  write:

 “Beyond its destructive impact on the Palestinian village of al-Walaja, the plan’s ramifications on the prospects of any viable political agreement should be seen on par with Israeli construction in E1. Both plans contribute to the Israeli government’s acceleration of de-facto annexation of the West Bank, in particularly the Greater Jerusalem area, while carrying dire ramifications on Palestinian human rights. The advancement of Har Gilo West joins a spate of cumulative Israeli measures taking place along the southern flank of East Jerusalem and its surroundings in a bid to consolidate Israeli control and increase territorial contiguity with the Gush Etzion settlement bloc. This is exemplified by the major settlement advancements in the vicinity and mass home demolitions in al-Walaja juxtaposed with the state’s neglect in initiating a zoning plan for the village’s area located within the Jerusalem municipal borders.”

Settlers Attack, Injure Palestinian in South Hebron Hills; IDF Arrests Him

On September 12th, A group of settlers from the illegal outpost of Havot Ma’on in the South Hebron Hills attacked Palestinians farming on their own nearby private land. The attack resulted in a skull fracture for one settler and a broken arms for Hafez Huraini, the Palestinian landowner defending himself while grazing flocks on his land.  [map] 

The Havat Ma’on outpost has a history of violent harassment of Palestinians working land near the outpost and the settlers’ illegally-built access road (illegal under even Israeli law). Despite this history, initial reports of this week’s attack in the Israeli press relied on the account of the settlers and Israeli security sources, depicting the incident as an attempted lynching of settlers by a group of Palestinians. Video footage of the incident subsequently proved that this account was wholly fictional, with the footage documenting aggressive actions by settlers – armed with iron rods and at least one automatic weapon (which was fired repeatedly) – against the Palestinians.  

Following the incident, Israeli authorities arrested Huraini and are reportedly investigating him on possible charges of attempted murder (apparently of the settler against whom he had the audacity to defend himself). Huraini remains in Israeli custody as of this writing, notwithstanding the video of the attack that is widely circulating (not to mention the accounts of Palestinians and internationals on the scene). Likewise, notwithstanding the clear aggression of settlers documented in that video, as of this writing no settlers have reportedly been arrested for the attack.

+972 reports that, in the immediate aftermath of the attack, settlers punctured the tires of the ambulance attempting to reach Huraini (before he was arrested), and then uprooted several olive trees in the area. All of this was done in the presence of Israeli soldiers. Later that night, Israeli officers raided the town of A-Tuwani, throwing tear gas and stun grenades into homes.

Following the incident, Kerem Navot tweeted the following context, which was provided by a Palestinian lawyer, Quamar Mishirqi-Assad, from the NGO Haqel:

 

“Due to the proximity of their ancestral lands to Havat Maon, the Huraini family has suffered at the hands of the settlers’ constant violence and attacks for years. On 12/20/2021, for example, Mr. Hafez Huraini went to his lands and saw about one hundred of his and his family’s five year-old olive, almond, and peach trees, as well as various vegetable plants  had been destroyed by settlers. A complaint was submitted to the Israeli police, yet to this day, no suspects have been found. 

Another example of the authorities’ total disregard and turning a blind eye to all attacks against Palestinians in this region- even when they have all the evidence needed to identify the attackers and bring them to justice- happened with Hafez’s son. On 30/03/2018, an ATV came down from Havat Maon and started to create a disturbance in the area next to Tuwani. At a certain point, the ATV started driving very fast towards residents and activists, trying to run them over. The driver succeeded, and ran over Hafez Huraini’s son, whose leg was broken as a result and was hospitalized. A complaint, along with pictures, was also submitted to the police after this attack. Included in the pictures was one showing the license plate of the ATV, despite this, the complaint was closed and the appeal against closing the complaint was rejected.” (The video – https://bit.ly/3qCIDrL). 

This aggregate of incidents combined tells the long story of violent acts against Palestinians in the region that have taken place recently, some of which were reported in real time to enforcement agencies. This includes: sending attack dogs, violent assault, stone throwing, arson, cutting trees, shepherding on private agricultural lands, expelling Palestinians from agricultural lands, throwing stun grenades by military personnel and more. 

Since the end of 2017, we have reported and asked for enforcement agencies’ to intervene in around 60 incidents of harassment and assault of residents of Tuwani by settlers and the army, around 20 of these complaints were submitted to the Israeli Police. Until today, we have not been updated about nor do we know of any example of the perpetrators being brought to justice. Indeed, we received a letter from the Attorney General of the West Bank, on 02/09/2021 who wrote that: ‘the army has been in conversation with the commanders in the regional brigade and that in the past months, there has been an increase in the scope of military force in the region.’ The letter also noted that: ‘the guidelines for the military forces working the area, in particular those obligating personnel to intervene in and stop violent incidents, and if necessary, detain suspects and bring them to the Israeli Police, have been made clearer.’ ongoing violations of the law and criminal activity continues in this region, showing that in reality and despite the ease with which one can expect such incidents to occur given that this region is so readily subject to disturbances, the security forces do not do a thing to prevent them in advance. This includes not evacuating the illegal outpost that sits on private Palestinian lands and whose residents are responsible for the majority of these violent incidents and the severe violations of the rule of law, public order and the safety of the Paelstinian residents.” 

 

Bonus Reads

1. “Desert council again seeking to build amphitheater in Ramon Crater” (The Times of Israel)

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about Israeli settlement activity this week.

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

March 18, 2022

1. Court Delays Decision on Mass Expulsion in Massafer Yatta
2. Settlers Construct New Outpost on World Heritage Site in Battir
3. Ma’aleh Adumim to Challenge Government of Delay of E-1 Settlement Construction
4. This Week in Settler Terrorism
5. U.S. Ambassador Has Harsh Words for Settlements, But Admits Some Construction Will Proceed
6. Further Reading

---

Court Delays Decision on Mass Expulsion in Massafer Yatta

On March 15th, the Israeli High Court held what was expected to be a decisive hearing regarding the fate of eight Palestinian communities facing expulsion — at the hands of the Israeli State — from a large area in the South Hebron Hills known as Massafer Yatta. This is an area that Israel declared to be a closed “firing zone” in the 1980s (known as Firing Zone 918). 

At the conclusion of this week’s hearing the Court did not issue its final ruling, but indicated it will convene another hearing in the coming months at which time it will issue its ruling. If given the green light, the forced expulsion in Massafer Yatta would constitute the largest displacement of Palestinians by Israel in decades — displacement that would be entirely illegal under international law.

This week’s court proceedings were live tweeted by the Israeli human rights group Breaking the Silence, and also covered by Palestinian journalist and activist Basel al-Adraa, who lives in Massafer Yatta. Adraa noted that it is “extremely likely” that the Israeli High Court will rule in favor of the State, and in so doing provide a green light (and legal cover, as far as the Israeli legal system is concerned) to the State’s plans to forcibly relocate some 1,300 people from the their homes and destroy their villages and  their unique way of life.  The State has maintained its argument that the firing zone is essential to state security, specifically for military training exercises because the terrain resembles Lebanon.

+972 Magazine, in a helpful explainer on this topic, explained why this effort to establish a pretense of legality for Israel’s actions against Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills flies in the face of international law and Israel’s obligations under treaties it has signed, writing:

“According to international law, and as detailed in treaties to which Israel is party, it is illegal to use occupied territory for a purpose that serves only the occupier and not the occupied population. In addition, international law prohibits the forcible transfer of the occupied population. The state has further claimed that one reason it needs the land in Masafer Yatta is to train soldiers for a possible war in Lebanon. But here, international law stipulates that such military use of occupied land can only be for the direct management or security needs of the occupied territory itself, making Israel’s declared purpose regarding Lebanon also illegal.”

A lawyer representing the eight communities under threat, Shlomo Lecker of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, told Reuters:

“This case is not about a firing zone, it is about taking control of land because unlike other areas, most of this land is privately owned,” said Shlomo Lecker who, along with the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, is representing 200 of the Palestinian families under threat of displacement. In effect this is land expropriation without compensation.”

Basel al-Adraa wrote for +972 Magazine:

“Our expulsion from Masafer Yatta has never ceased over the last two decades. Lacking the ability to expel everyone at once, like in 1999, the army has tried to slowly dispossess us. To immiserate us until we leave. Every year, I have watched as Israeli soldiers seal our wells, cut water lines, and destroy the roads that connect our villages. The dangerous road conditions here are a constant reminder of a racist reality governed by an army that denies us our ability to live on our land legally. Even our vehicles are confiscated by soldiers when they feel like it. Our lives have become nearly impossible. We want to build families and homes, but know the army will destroy those as well.”

Settlers Construct New Outpost on World Heritage Site in Battir

In the early morning hours of March 14th, a group of settlers accompanied by Israeli soldiers set up a new outpost on a piece of land in the Palestinian village of Battir, located near Bethlehem, on land that is registered UNESCO world heritage site. Settlers reportedly moved in two caravans, a large tent, and sheep – suggesting an intent to establish a so-called agricultural outpost. The sheep pen was reportedly removed from the area on the same day it was brought in. 

Since the outpost was set up, Middle East Eye reports that Israeli soldiers have been continuously patrolling the area to prevent any Palestinians from approaching the site – and attacking those who attempt to protest the new outpost. This is the fourth time settlers have attempted to establish an outpost in the area of Battir.

An local activist from Battir, Hassan Muamer, explained the settlers strategy:

“The settlers want to connect these two outposts [the new outpost and an outpost established in 2019 in the nearby Al-Makhrour Valley] together, and confiscate hundreds of acres of land in the process..This is all part of their plan, to shorten the distance between the two outposts, confiscate more land, and eventually connect these outposts to the settlements of Har Gilo, Gilo, and Gush Etzion, creating a massive settlement bloc that extends from Jerusalem, through Bethlehem, all the way to Hebron.”

Peace Now said in a statement:

 “It is no coincidence that this illegal outpost is established while most of the public’s attention is drawn towards the war in Ukraine. The current government has already failed several times in stopping a handful of settlers in Eviatar, Homesh, and other places and has refrained from evicting illegal outposts immediately upon their establishment. The government must not fail this time, so the outpost will not be established.”

Ma’aleh Adumim to Challenge Government of Delay of E-1 Settlement Construction

The Jerusalem Post reports that the settlement council of Ma’aleh Adumim is preparing to submit an appeal against the State of Israel for delaying construction of the E-1 settlement, contending that Prime Minister Bennett and Defense Minister Gantz lack the authority to freeze the plans at this stage. The petition will be submitted to the Jerusalem Local Court, according to the report.

As a reminder, the E-1 settlement plan remains on the precipice of construction. In January 2022, the Bennett government intervened to stop a key hearing on the project. At the time, reports suggested that the political echelon had put on “indefinite hold” on the plan, largely due to U.S. pressure. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Thomas Nides seemed to confirm that U.S. pressure was exerted at that time to stop E-1 from moving forward, telling Peace Now recently:

“I went full board [sic] on E1… It is a very important area which if [built] could cut off any possibility of a capital for the Palestinians.”

Also as a reminder: in its current form, the E-1 plan provides for the construction of 3,412 new settlement units on a site located northeast of Jerusalem. The site is home to several Palestinian bedouin communities, including Khan al-Ahmar, which Israel has already undertaken to forcibly displace (many attempts). Long called a “doomsday” settlement by supporters of a two-state solution, construction of the E-1 settlement would sever East Jerusalem from its West Bank hinterland, preventing East Jerusalem from ever functioning as a viable Palestinian capital. It would also cut the West Bank effectively in half, isolating the northern West Bank from the southern West Bank and foreclosing the possibility of the establishment of a Palestinian state with territorial contiguity.

Israel’s “answer” to the latter criticism has long been to argue that Palestinians don’t need territorial contiguity, and that new roads can instead provide “transportational continuity.” To this end, Israel has already built the so-called “Sovereignty Road” – a sealed road that enables Palestinians to pass through, but not to enter, the E-1 area. That road is wholly under Israel’s control (meaning Israel can cut off Palestinian passage through it at any time). In January 2021, then-Prime Minister  Netanyahu promised to increase funding for the “Sovereignty Road” as part of the drive to get E-1 built.

And another reminder: there have been attempts to promote the E-1 plan since the early 1990s, but due to wall-to-wall international opposition, the plan was not advanced until 2012, when Netaynuahu ordered it to be approved for deposit for public review (a key step in the approval process), ostensibly as payback for the Palestinians seeking recognition at the United Nations. Following an outcry from the international community, the plan again went into a sort of dormancy, only to be put back on the agenda by Netanyahu in February 2020, when he was facing his third round of elections in the two years. 

Also, as a reminder: under the Trump Plan (which the Biden Administration has yet to comment on), the area where E-1 is located is slated to become part of Israel.

This Week in Settler Terrorism

On March 14th, an Israeli-licensed car drove into an IDF checkpoint, in an apparent attack, near the illegal Homesh outpost, lightly injuring two Israeli soldiers. It’s unclear what happened next, as the IDF has not said if the perpetrator – who is thought to be an Israeli settler, given the license plate on the car – was arrested. What is clear is that the IDF did not respond with lethal force, as is almost always the case when Israeli soldiers perceive themselves to be under attack by a car driven by a Palestinians.

This week’s apparent car ramming attack transpired two days after settlers from the site of the former settlement of Homesh (which is supposed to be a closed military zone) arrived at the checkpoint to stage a stone-throwing attack on Palestinian cars. The settlers ended up battling IDF soldiers who attempted to stop their terrorism. An IDF soldier subsequently filed a complaint with the Israeli police about the incident.

Elsewhere, Israel arrested two settlers on suspicion of involvement in vandalism and destruction of Palestinian property in the village of Fara’ata on March 15th. One of the detained settlers serves as the security coordinator for the Gilad outpost, and the second arrestee is a bodyguard. Following the arrest and remand of the settlers, security coordinators for various other Israeli settlements and outposts announced they will be going on strike.

It’s also worth noting that Defense Minister Benny Gantz signed an order this week to place an unnamed 21-year old settler under administration detention on suspicion of involvement with terrorism against Palestinians and Israelis. Though administrative detention is a familiar military tool used to keep Palestinians incarcerated without charge, Haaretz reports this will be the first such order signed against an Israeli since February 2020.  There are currently 490 Palestinians being held as administrative detainees according to Addameer.

The detained settler is believed to be from the Givat Ronen outpost, an outpost from which settlers attacked Palestinians and Israeli activists who were planting trees on privately owned Palestinian land near the village of Burin in the northern West Bank in January 2022. Footage of the attack shows settlers wielding clubs, throwing stones, and burning a car — in the process injuring six people. Following the attack, the Israeli authorities delivered demolition notices to five structures at the Givat Ronen outpost (also known as Sneh Ya’akov), where the attackers are believed to be illegally living. The notices were posted on January 23rd.

Subsequently, the apparently undaunted settlers attacked an IDF soldier during riots near the Givat Ronen outpost. Haaretz reports that dozens of settlers participated in the attack, which included stone throwing and tear gassing Israeli troops.

Kerem Navot – an anti-settlement watchdog – provides critical history on the Givat Ronen outpost and how violence is at the center of settlers’ drive to takeover Palestinian land, tweeting:

“The outpost of ‘Givat Ronen,’ known also as ‘Sneh Yaakov,’ is named after the man who founded it in 1998–Ronen Arusi…Givat Ronen is one of two outposts located around the isolated, violent, and extremist settlement of Har Bracha, which was established overlooking the city of Nablus in 1983. Givat Ronen is located about a kilometer south of the settlement…The two outposts surrounding this settlement (like all outposts in the West Bank) are used for the same function: to take over land surrounding the settlement. In this case, the lands of the village of Burin. The approach is simple: you build an outpost on land that was looted by the state by declaring it to be “state land”; from there you continue to take over cultivated agricultural land surrounding the outpost by way of violence ​​most of which were previously cultivated by Palestinians. In practice, as a result of the settler violence that is backed by the army, Palestinians are not able to access any of this land, or any of the land within the much larger area around the settlement covering about 5,400 dunams that this land is located in, unless they work in construction in the settlement of Har Bracha. The scumbags who carried out this pogrom below the outpost have learned this tactic well: employing murderous violence in order to increase the size of the territory that Palestinians cannot enter. They have every reason in the world to assume that in this case, as in every case, no one will bother to leverage the law against them.”

U.S. Ambassador Has Harsh Words for Settlements, But Admits Some Construction Will Proceed

Speaking to a virtual event organized by Americans Peace Now, U.S. Ambassador Thomas Nides called Israeli settlement construction “infuriating” and “stupid.” Nides, while deriding the settlement growth, conceded that the U.S cannot (or will not?) stop Israel from all settlement construction,  saying:

“We can’t do stupid things that impede us for a two-state solution…We can’t have the Israelis doing settlement growth in east Jerusalem or the West Bank. I’m a bit of a nag on this, including the idea of settlement growth – which infuriates me, when they do things – just infuriates the situation, both in east Jerusalem and the West Bank… [I] would be lying [if he said that it was possible to avert] every single house that is built. I can’t stop everything, just so we are clear.”

Bonus Reads

1. “Major New Developments: Plans being advanced around the Old City and the Court verdict regarding Sheikh Jarrah evictions” (Terrestrial Jerusalem)
2. “Instead of Army Service, Israel Allows People to Volunteer at Illegal West Bank Outposts” (Haaretz)
3. “US envoy looks to bolster West Bank economy with 4G service, tech offerings” (The Times of Israel)
4. “PA complains to US over ‘settler terrorism’” (Arutz Sheva)