Settlement & Annexation Report: August 11, 2022

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.

August 11, 2022

  1. Israel Completes Secret Registration of New Land in East Jerusalem
  2. Israel Asks Court to Stay Out of Homesh Outpost Case on Promise to Evacuate Settlers (Eventually)
  3. IDF Removes Settlers from Ramat Migron Outpost
  4. This Week in Area C: Continued Annexation & Harassment
  5. Not Just Area C: Settlers Eye Archaeological Site in Area B
  6. Update: Israeli University Defends Excavation Near Nabi Saleh
  7. New Analysis of “Silicon Wadi” Project
  8. Bonus Reads

Israel Completes Secret Registration of New Land in East Jerusalem

Israel Hayom reports that Israel has succeeded in secretly registering State ownership of 16 dunams (four acres) of land in East Jerusalem, opening the possibility for constructing a new settlement enclave there. 

The Israeli Justice Ministry secretly completed the acquisition of the land after the Israeli Custodian General hired researchers tasked with finding evidence that the land was purchased by Jews in the 1920s as part of a larger land purchase, though this part of the land was not registered. A court recently accepted new evidence found by the researchers, resulting in the land being placed under the control of the Israeli Custodian of Absentee Property on a temporary basis, while the State searches for the Jewish owners (or their heirs).

The newly-registered land is surrounded by Palestinian neighborhoods, close to the West Bank barrier (which in this location is an actual wall) to the East – with Abu Dis on the far side – and the Palestinian neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukhaber to the west. According to Haaretz, the location is considered one of the most sensitive in East Jerusalem, due to its proximity to the building designated as the future home of the Palestinian parliament and its distance from other Jewish neighborhoods. 

This land is south of the area where that has been planned for the settlement called Kidmat Tzion, though this plan has been frozen. In 2017 (during the Trump-Netanyahu era), Ir Amim reported that Kidmat Zion was one of nine Jerusalem area settlements that Israel planned to move forward.

Israel Asks Court to Stay Out of Homesh Outpost Case on Promise to Evacuate Settlers (Eventually)

On August 10th, lawyers representing the Israeli government told the High Court of Justice that it plans to remove settlers from the illegal Homesh outpost site as soon as the Defense Minister sets a date for the evacuation, asking the Court to allow it to delay the evacuation until it finds “the right time from a security standpoint.” This is the second time the State has assured the Court that it will dismantle the outpost without committing to a deadline to enforce Israeli law against the settlers illegally living and studying there.

The Israeli NGO Yesh Din said in response:

“The state continues its foot-dragging and refuses to carry out its legal and moral obligation, which is to evacuate the outpost built illegally on private land belonging to the village of Burqa. The expulsion of Palestinians and the stealing of their land must end. Every day that passes increases the injustice and rewards lawbreakers. The defense minister and the prime minister, like their predecessors, prove that the rule of law will always take second place in the face of political interests and appeasing the settlers. The Supreme Court must bring them back into line by a clear judicial ruling that expresses its displeasure at this conduct, which is a complete infraction of the law and infringement of Palestinian rights.”

The State has, for over a year, delayed its response to a 2019 petition filed by Yesh Din seeking the removal of settlers and settler structures from the site of the former Homesh settlement, located in the northern West Bank, and a guarantee of the site’s return to Palestinian landowners. The Homesh settlement was dismantled by the Israeli government as part of the 2005 Disengagement Plan (along with two other small settlements in the area). Despite Homesh being dismantled, Israel never permitted Palestinians to regain access to or control of the land, declaring it a closed military zone. That status has prevented Palestinians from entering the area,  while allowing settlers to routinely enter and (illegally, under Israeli law) inhabit the land, even (illegally) establishing a yeshiva there. That yeshiva, according to the Israeli NGO Kerem Navot, has become one of the West Bank’s “hardcore centers of settler terror”. Settlers have also wreaked terror on nearby Palestinian villages, most notably Burqa and Sebastia. One Israeli politician even went so far as to say that settlers are “carrying out a pogrom” in Burqa.

Settlers and and their powerful allies in the government ramped up their lobbying campaign pressing the Israeli government to officially reestablish the Homesh settlement in the wake of the death of settler Yehuda Dimentan in December 2021. Dimentan studied at the illegal yeshiva at the Homesh site. In January 2022, settlers staged a massive march to Homesh as part of its pressure campaign to legalize the yeshiva in his memory.

IDF Removes Settlers from Ramat Migron Outpost

In the early morning hours of August 11th, Israeli forces cleared the illegal outpost dubbed by settlers “Ramat Migron”, removing three mobile homes and razing a structure used by settlers as a synagogue. The Times of Israel reports that three families and several young settlers were living in the outpost, which is located north of Ramallah on a hilltop where the illegal outpost of Migron, evacuated by the government of Israel a decade ago, formerly stood. Settlers remain defiant, saying:

​​“We have something to tell you, ministers of the government: we do not intend even for a moment to give up, and we intend to continue to hold on to the hill until it becomes an established and flourishing permanent settlement.”

As a reminder, the illegal outpost known as Migron was dismantled by the Israeli government in 2012 when the Israeli High Court ruled the land is privately owned by Palestinians. Since then settlers have continually sought to reestablish a settlement there. Israeli forces have razed outposts at the site at least 10 times in the past 10 years — all the while denying Palestinians the ability to reclaim control over land that an Israeli court affirmed they own.

As a reminder: In addition to the IDF retaining control over the Migron outpost site, Israel rewarded the settlers it forcibly removed from the outpost by promising to establish two new official settlements: “New Migron” as well as 184 housing units to be built east of the settlement of Adam (aka, Geva Binyamin). Construction of the “New Migron” settlement was completed in July 2020. All said, the two new settlements and temporary housing for the evicted settlers cost Israeli taxpayers millions of dollars – sending a clear message that settler law-breaking pays off.

This Week in Area C: Continued Annexation & Harassment

The Israeli state and its settlers have not taken a summer break from the ongoing campaign to effect the de facto and de jure annexation of Area C. 

  • On a tour of the northern West Bank, Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar called for a new National Plan to “protect” Area C.
  • Also in the northern West Bank, work began this week on a large, new Torah center in the Immanuel settlement – a settlement currently enjoying a construction boom as reported by Arutz Sheva.
  • And finally, settlers continue to closely monitor and report on Palestinian construction in Area C – this time on a new water park that opened this summer and a few new Though settlers allege the water park was built illegally, the Israeli Civil Administration assured Israel Hayom that illegal construction has already been dismantled.

Not Just Area C: Settlers Eye Archaeological Site in Area B

As FMEP has chronicled, settlers and the Israeli state have undertaken an organized campaign that weaponizes archaeology to serve their own political agenda. Just last week, FMEP covered how the Sambuski cemetery in East Jerusalem is a part of the effort.

An August 3rd report by Israel Hayom details Palestinian plans to develop a national park at a historical site that settlers refer to as “Tel Orma,” which is the site of an ancient fort and reportedly rich with remnants of Jewish heritage in the area. The report suggests that the Palestinian Authority has damaged the site and is also determined to destroy evidence of Jewish civilization and antiquities that are potentially located there. This site is in Area B of the West Bank, where Israel does not exercise civil control of matters like culture and archaeology, but that has not stopped settlers from flying a drone over the site to see what the Palsetinians have been developing there, or from visiting the site to see the work in person. 

Head of the Samaria Regional Council Yossi Dagan – whose ambitions to take over more land for the settlements are not confined to Area A – told Israel Hayom:

“We call on the Israeli government, the defense minister, and the public security minister to take action right away and protect these important places. Just like no other country in the world would allow its people’s history to be attacked, we must not allow rioters from the Palestinian Authority to harm our history. Tel Orma is [part of] the Jewish people’s legacy and an important part of Jewish history, and we cannot stand by as the place is systematically destroyed.”

Update: Israeli University Defends Excavation Near Nabi Saleh

Following media attention to an excavation being conducted by Bar Illan University in the West Bank, the university has now publicly defended the dig, saying that it is located on “State land.” The Israeli Civil Administration also stated that the dig is being conducted legally and that a permit had been issued in accordance with Israeli military law which governs the occupied territories. 

The area is located between the Palestinian villages of Nabi Saleh and Deir Nidham, just north of Ramallah. Palestinians claim that the land is privately owned.

New Analysis of “Silicon Wadi” Project

This week Ir Amim issued a new report on the “Silicon Wadi” project being implemented by the Jerusalem Municipality, which calls for the establishment of a major high-tech hub along the western side of East Jerusalem’s Wadi Joz neighborhood, requiring the eviction of many Palestinian businesses located there. The report is a useful summary of where the project stands, what its implications are, and how the “Silicon Wadi” initiative connects to larger plans by the State and settlers to increase Israeli hegemony over Jerusalem. 

 Most importantly and urgently, Ir Amim stresses regarding the Silicon Wadi project:

  • Palestinian businesses are in a “tenuous position” because most are able to operate based on “special use” permits allowing them to conduct business on land that is not zoned/designated for such use. Theoretically, Israel can revoke those permits if it chooses.
  • The land in question has not been registered, and Israel has been re-initiating the land registration in other parts of Jerusalem. If the process were to be restarted for this land, the land could be placed under the control of the Israeli Custodian General. Ir Amim also reports that the attorney hired by Israel to conduct an unofficial mapping of the area is known to have ties to settler groups.
  • The project fails to address the primary need of East Jerusalem: housing. The ongoing housing crisis in East Jerusalem is at an all-time high.
  •  And finally, Ir Amim writes: “The land slated for the Wadi Joz Business Park is located between the Kerem al-Jaouni section of Sheikh Jarrah, where settler groups have been working to evict approximately 30 Palestinian families, 5 and the northeastern part of the Old City. …there is speculation that the plan aims to extend the ring of settlements within Palestinian neighborhoods around the Old City and establish an Israeli stronghold on the northeastern side under the guise of economic development.”

Bonus Reads

  1. “More U.S. Jews Moved to West Bank Settlements in 2021 Than Any Other Year in Past Decade” (Haaretz)
  2. “Israel expands West Bank security fence as violence escalates in Jenin” (Al-Monitor)
  3. “Israel Demolished a Palestinian’s Home in Violation of Court Orders. He Now Lives in a Tent With His Children” (Haaretz)
  4. “Top British Funder of Israel Trips to Probe Surprise Overnight Stays in Settlement” (Haaretz)
  5. “Jewish groups fume at construction of illegal Palestinian water park“ (Israel Hayom)
  6. “Opinion  Shame on me for believing courts could stop the Israeli settlement machine” (Gershom Gorenberg / Washington Post)
  7. “Basketball Team From West Bank Settlement Should Be Kicked Out of Israel League, Says Ex-pro Player” (Haaretz)

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.

August 4, 2022

  1. Encircling Jerusalem: Israel Advances Settlement Plans Across the City, While Settler Projects Tighten the Noose
  2. Dumping Any Pretense of Respect for Rule of Law, Israeli High Court Reverses Course, Allows Mitzpe Kramim Outpost to be “Legalized”
  3. Settlers Acquire Another Home in Downtown Hebron
  4. Elad Closes Palestinian Access Road Near Sambuski Cemetary in Silwan
  5. This Week in Area C, Part 1: JNF Approves Purchase of Palestinian Land In Jordan Valley While High Court Weighs Petition
  6. This Week in Area C, Part 2: Regavim Files Petition Pushing for Immediate Demolition of Palestinian Construction in Area C
  7. This Week in Area C, Part 3: Settlers Continue to Occupy Six Sites After Recent Attempt to Establish New Outposts En Masse
  8. Groups Petition to Cancel New Israeli-Led Archeological Dig in the West Bank Citing Legal Questions
  9. Bonus Reads

 

Encircling Jerusalem: Israel Advances Settlement Plans Across the City, While Settler Projects Tighten the Noose

It must be stressed that events over the past several months (while the Settlement Report has taken an abbreviated form) have rapidly accelerated the encirclement of Jerusalem by settlements and settler-backed projects — developments which come at the direct expense of Palestinians — their presence in Jerusalem, their rights as land owners, and their quality of life. This encirclement continues to progress, unabated and almost entirely unchallenged, each day.

Last week, on July 25th, the Jerusalem District Planning Committee advanced plans for two brand new settlements in East Jerusalem – “Givat HaShaked” and the “Lower Aqueduct” plan. These two settlements that would nearly complete the encirclement of Jerusalem to the south. Details of those plans are: 

  • The Lower Aqueduct plan (1,465 new units) was approved for deposit for public comment. This plan would see a new settlement – called the Lower Aqueduct Plan – built on a small sliver of land between the controversial settlements of Givat Hamatos and Har Homa – and is intended to connect them. In so doing, it will establish an uninterrupted continuum of Israeli settlements on the southern rim of Jerusalem, and destroy the contiguity of Palestinian land in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. 
  • The Givat HaShaked settlement was also discussed, and the Committee opted to increase the total number of units that the plan outlines for construction, from ~400 to 700 housing units, plus schools and synagogues. Ir Amim and Terrestrial Jerusalem both report that, after a few technical requirements are met, the plan to build Givat HaShaked is expected to receive final approval when the Committee reconvenes in the coming weeks. The plan for Givat HaShaked is unprecedented, according to Terrestrial Jerusalem, in that it is the first settlement of this size that that Israeli government will establish inside of a Palestinian neighborhood – Beit Safafa, which will be completely encircled by Israeli construction if Givat HaShaked is built.

For more background on the Lower Aqueduct plan, see resources by: Terrestrial Jerusalem and Ir Amim.

These plans are significant developments in the effort to establish settler hegemony over East Jerusalem, but are only part of the story of how the encirclement of East Jerusalem has rapidly advanced over the past months. In addition to the construction of new settlements and growth of existing ones, settlers are succeeding in advancing new projects under the guise of tourism (like: the Cable Car, a new visitors center in Batan Al Hawa, and more) and the State is undertaking systematic efforts to take over more and more land. Those methods include the revival of a politicized land registration process in East Jerusalem and the expansion of “national park” lands onto the Mount of Olives. Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan also continue to face the looming threat of dispossession through Court proceedings. In a rare piece of good news — on July 21st the Israeli Supreme Court partially accepted a petition filed by the Duweik family, which has led to the (temporary) freezing of their eviction.

Another facet is the looming threat is the seemingly growing inevitability of the construction of the E-1 settlement to Jerusalem’s east. Prior to the arrival of U.S. President Joe Biden in Jerusalem on July 13th, the Israeli government intervened to postpone a critical hearing on the E-1 settlement, rescheduling it for September 12th. The rescheduled hearing, if it is not postponed yet again, could result in granting final approval to the highly contentious plan (and barring intensive outside pressure such additional postponement seems highly improbable, given the Israeli domestic politics and the upcoming national election). See Terrestrial Jerusalem for a recap of President Biden’s visit.

Dumping Any Pretense of Respect for Rule of Law, Israeli High Court Reverses Course, Allows Mitzpe Kramim Outpost to be “Legalized”

Nearly two years after ruling there is no possible legal basis by which the Mitzpe Kramim outpost can be retroactively “legalized” under Israeli law, the Israeli Supreme Court has now reversed course and will allow the State to formally legalize the settlement using the so-called Market Regulation principle.

In its original ruling, issued in September 2020, the High Court held that construction of the Mitzpe Kramim outpost was not undertaken in “good faith” because there were “multiple warning signs” that the land was privately owned by Palestinians. The outpost was ordered to be dismantled at that time. Now, with apparently no new evidence, the Court decided to accept the settlers’ claim of “good faith.”

The “good faith” condition for retroactive legalization of illegal settler construction on privately-owned Palestinian land is a central element of the “market regulation” legal principle which was devised by former Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit in December 2018 as an alternative to the (now overturned) Settlement Regulation Law. The principle offers a path to grant retroactive legalization to the settlers for what this principle treats as “unintentional” land theft – throwing the principles of both rule of law and private property rights out the window. Peace Now has a comprehensive breakdown of the legal opinion, including the specific criteria outlining which outposts can qualify under the new scheme. It is estimated that 2,000 illegal settlement structures qualify for retroactive legalization using this principle.

Yesh Din writes on the significance of this ruling:

“This ruling overtly indicates Israel’s intentions to continue to pursue retroactive legalization of illegal Israeli construction in blatant disregard of the rights of the local Palestinian population of the West Bank. The State of Israel continues to ignore the duties bestowed upon it by IHL, as the occupying power, to protect the occupied population. Additionally, as the occupying power, Israel is prohibited from transferring the occupier’s population into occupied territory. The interpretation of the Supreme Court’s majority opinion will, in practice, undoubtedly serve to fulfill the intentions of the repealed Regularization Bill from 2017. It will enable settlers, backed by the Civil Administration and other State authorities, to take over thousands of dunams of Palestinian land, leading to human rights violations on a massive scale all over the West Bank and serving as the basis for future negligent and illegal policies, which are now more likely to be given the go-ahead by the Supreme Court. This ruling symbolizes a turning point of Israel’s Supreme Court, which, for the first time, has endorsed the forced confiscation of privately owned land, which is not required for military needs, for the sole purpose of use by Israeli civilians for the establishment of a new settlement.”

In +972 Magazine, Orly Noy writes:

“The court’s ruling could potentially pave the way for the retroactive legalization of thousands more homes in outposts built on privately-owned Palestinian land…The legalization of Mitzpe Kramim is only a footnote in Israel’s policies of dispossession and land theft on both sides of the Green Line, carried out through what the Israeli regime deems completely “legal” expropriations…And one more word regarding the concept of “good faith,” which was sufficient reasoning for the High Court to retroactively legalize the theft of private Palestinian land. This same line of argumentation did not protect the residents of Umm al-Hiran, a Bedouin village in the Negev/Naqab, from being threatened with destruction and expulsion, even though they were physically placed where the village exists today in the 1950s by the military government after it expelled them from their original land, on which Kibbutz Shoval now sits. Although the state itself was the one to move them to their new location, the residents of Umm al-Hiran have lived for decades without basic infrastructure such as water and electricity — that is, until the state decided to destroy the village in order to build Hiran, a town for Jews alone, on its ruins. Unlike the settlers of Mitzpe Kramim, the residents of Umm al-Hiran did not take over land that did not belong to them, nor did they settle on private land that belonged to others. And yet, the state did not hesitate to brutally deport them — even killing a local resident, Yacoub Abu al-Qi’an, in the process. The same court that will allow the residents of Mitzpe Kramim to remain on land it itself admits does not belong to them did not hesitate to legalize the cleansing of Umm al-Hiran. Because, after all, in the apartheid regime, even the concept of “good faith” applies solely to Jewish citizens.”

Settlers Acquire Another Home in Downtown Hebron

On July 28th, a settler group called Harchvi announced it has purchased a three-story house in central Hebron, very close to the Tomb of the Patriarchs/Al-Ibrahimi Mosque and on the Palestinian side of a key IDF checkpoint (the “Pharmacy” checkpoint), which Israeli Jews are supposed to be prohibited from crossing. The group was granted a purchase agreement by the Israeli Defense Ministry this week, which seemingly legitimizes the settlers claim to have purchased the property – but it is not a final determination of the legality of the transaction. This is the second such house in Hebron that settlers have claimed to have purchased from Palestinians owners this year. 

Providing more detail on the status of the house, Peace Now writes:

“Peace Now has no information regarding the alleged deal in this case. We know from many other cases in Hebron and in the West Bank that these are dubious purchases, which are sometimes based on forgery or the purchase of only small parts of the property. It almost always turns out that the settlers may have managed to acquire the rights from one person, but the rest of the rights holders did not agree and the issue gets to courts for lengthy hearings. When settlers entered the Za’atari house in March 2018, the case got to the courts and the legal argument is still pending, but the settlers are still in the house. Every purchase of land in the territories requires the approval of the Minister of Defense – according to the law in the Occupied Territories, in order to make a transaction and register it in the land registry, a transaction permit from the Civil Administration is required. Any such transaction-permit requires the prior approval of the Minister of Defense. In this case, it is hard to believe that the settlers have a transaction permit from the Minister of Defense. In all previous cases the settlers hurry to establish a fact on the ground, enter the house and only then submit applications for registration of purchase, and only then does it come to the Defense Minister’s approval. The defense minister can refuse and prevent the execution of the deal.”

In addition to the settlement activity in Hebron that the state of Israel has formally (and publicly) sanctioned, +972 Magazine reports this week that over the past month settlers have been bulldozing Palestinian stores that have been inaccessible to their owners for more than 20 years under Israel closure orders. Though the Israeli Civil Administration has denied authorizing the settlers’ destruction of the stores over the past month, one of the Palestinian shop owners, Tareq Al-Kiyal, raises the point that “Nothing moves in the Old City — and certainly no bulldozers come in and destroy buildings — without a green light from the army.” Palestinians have filed a police report regarding the damage to the stores, which they believe were demolished by settlers in order to expand the nearby settlement enclave, Avraham Avinu.

The shops are in an area referred to as the Kiyal Market, which was “temporarily” shuttered by the Israeli army in 2001 during the Second Intifada. Since then, Palestinians have been forbidden from reopening the shops and cannot even enter their shops to remove valuable equipment. Meanwhile, Israeli settlers have systematically looted the stores, and have been using the buildings for warehouses, recreational spaces, and even as housing. 

Elad Closes Palestinian Access Road Near Sambuski Cemetary in Silwan 

Emek Shaveh reports that the Elad settler group has blocked an access road near the Sambuski cemetery in the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem, a move which blocks car traffic to the Wadi Rababa area of Silwan where some 150 Palestinian families live. Palestinian residents, in partnership with Emek Shaveh, have appealed to several Israeli authoritative bodies (including the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority, the Jerusalem Municipality, and the Israeli police) to remove the boulders blocking the road, but Elad has failed to cooperate with efforts to negotiate a solution and has instead continued their work at the site. Emek Shaveh reports that the ongoing blockage of the road has led to daily friction between Palestinians and Elad employees.

The Sambuski cemetery is deeply integrated into Elad’s overarching, comprehensive plan to control the Silwan neighborhood. However, the cemetery was a relatively unknown, neglected site until recent years. In 2020, the Trump “Peace to Prosperity” plan identified the Sambuski cemetery as a place of prime historical and religious importance to Israel, elevating the status of the cemetery. The Israeli NGO Emek Shaveh – which has a special expertise on archaeology and the way archeology has been weaponized to serve the political agenda of the settlers and the state – wrote a report on exactly how the Trump “Vision” supports settler efforts to use Jerusalem’s history and antiquities to promote Israeli-Jewish hegemony and control over the city.

Emek Shaveh explains how the cemetery is connected to other settler endeavors in Silwan:

“For the Elad Foundation the cemetery is a strategic site as it links together two important focal points of its enterprise – the neighborhood of Silwan, home to the City of David archaeological park and specifically to the Pool of Siloam at the southern tip of the site, and the Hinnom Valley an area which Elad has been developing for the past two years (more below).”

This Week in Area C, Part 1: JNF Approves Purchase of Palestinian Land In Jordan Valley While High Court Weighs Petition

At the urging of the Israeli government, the Board of the Jewish National Fund (JNF) approved the allocation of $18 million for the purchase of 250 acres (1,000 dunams) of Palestinian-owned land in the Jordan Valley, land that is the subject of a petition with the High Court of Justice. 

Israel has controlled the land in question since issuing a military closure order in 1969. In the 1980s, the World Zionist Organization then allocated the land (which is privately owned by Palestinians) to settlers without any documentation of either having received control of the land from the government, or documentation allocating the land to the settlers. Since then, settlers have developed the land into profitable date farms. In 2018, several Palestinian landowners have filed a petition with the High Court of Justice to have the settlers removed from the area and the land returned to their control. In a contentious court hearing in June 2022, in which the State conceded that it does not know how or why the settlers were allocated the land in the first place, High Court Justice Esther Hayut told the State lawyer: “Given that you cannot explain how the land was given to those to whom it was given, does that give them the right to remain there forever?” 

The JNF – via its subsidiary group Himnuta, which handles West Bank transactions –  allegedly secured a deal with a Palestinian landowner to purchase the land in phases, starting with a smaller plot in 2018. Further phases of the the transaction were canceled due to criticism of the JNF’s involvement in land purchases in the occupied West Bank at the time. The deal is now back in process at the request of the Isareli Defense Ministry in order to finalize the transaction before the High Court.

This Week in Area C, Part 2: Regavim Files Petition Pushing for Immediate Demolition of Palestinian Construction in Area C

The settler group Regavim filed a petition with the Israeli High Court of Justice seeking to change operational procedures within the Civil Administration so that Palestinian construction in Area C can be immediately demolished – eliminating any chance for Palestinian landowners to challenge the demolition of their property – if it is believed to be illegal. Regavim calls it “absurd” that the Civil Administration would allow Palestinians a chance to assert their legal rights to build on land in Area C before demolition is carried out.

While settlers push for faster demolition of illegal (under Israeli law) Palestinian construction in Area C, a new piece by +972 Magazine reveals that an Israeli official who is in charge of handing out demolition orders against Palestinian buildings  in the Massaffer Yatta region, himself lives in an illegally built home in an illegally built outpost. This only furthers the clear message that settler groups are not interested in ensuring the faithful enforcement of Israeli law, but are rather interested in wielding Israeli law as a weapon to displace and replace Palestinians.

This Week in Area C, Part 3: Settlers Continue to Occupy Six Sites After Recent Attempt to Establish New Outposts En Masse

According to an op-ed by Arlene Kushner, settlers continue to ”maintain a presence” at six sites located in Area C where they are planning to establish new outposts. These are the same sites that were part of a large-scale effort two weeks ago, led by the Nahala settler movement, to establish six new outposts all at once. That effort was thwarted by Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who ordered Israeli security forces to prevent and remove settlers from the sites.

The determination of settlers to violate the law is unsurprising, in the ensuing hours after the failed operation a leader of the Nahala Movement, Daniela Weiss, told Haaretz:

“We’ll be back, of course. We’ll try to come back in a day or two. If it’s this Shabbat, I can’t say. We’re taking it one step at a time.”

Groups Petition to Cancel New Israeli-Led Archeological Dig in the West Bank Citing Legal Questions

The Israeli NGOs Haqel and Emek Shaveh report that on July 25th, an Israeli archaeologist launched a new excavation of the “Tel Tibnah” site in the Ramallah district, with sponsorship from the Israeli Bar-Ilan University. The NGOs jointly raised concerns about the political motivation behind the excavation, given “several fundamental legal and ethical issues” with the dig. The groups have called for the immediate cancellation of the excavation.

Haqel and Emek Shaveh further explain:

To the best of our knowledge, the site is situated on private and public lands of three Palestinian villages: Deir-Nisham, Beit Rima and Nebi Salah, and lies in proximity to the village of Abud. These lands are used by the local Palestinian population for agriculture and herding. In addition, within the site there is a spring that serves for drinking and irrigation. Initiating archaeological projects on privately owned land, even if these are declared as archaeological sites, demands that notification be given to the owners of these lands and their approval is required in advance. Entering private property without the permission of the owner is defined as a criminal act of incursion, even more so when conducting actions that might damage property and prevent access to the property, as is a frequent occurrence throughout the West Bank. The local residents unambiguously submitted their objection to the proposed excavations which will have a dramatic effect on their lives, impact their freedom of movement and violate their property rights. So far, this objection has not been taken into consideration.

The main question at stake is the State of Israel’s range of legitimate courses of action and that of Israeli academia. Initiation of an academic archaeological excavation serves, by nature, a scientific-academic motivation. This project does not serve an immediate necessity or mitigate against a pending danger, and does not meet the criteria as a “salvage excavation”, nor does it serve the local population living around the site. Any attempt to “govern” archaeological sites that are not within the sovereign borders of Israel is a political act and not a scientific one.

In addition, the claims of “antiquity robbery” should not justify state actions, and the political act should not be concealed as an archaeological one. The erosion of the distinction between heritage protection on the one hand and settlement and annexation on the other, threatens the future of archaeology.”

 

As FMEP has chronicled, settlers and their allies are intent on taking control of archaeological sites in the West Bank, and and seizing artifacts that are currently under Palestinian control. Settlers claim the sites are neglected and/or damaged. To that end, the settler groups known as “the Shilo Forum” and the “Shomrim al HaNetzach” (“Preservers of the Eternal”) — see background on these groups here — issued a report surveying 365 sites in the West Bank and arguing that the Palestinian Authority is moving to “erase all traces of Israel’s ancient Jewish heritage.” The accusations were in addition to allegations of neglect, mismanagement, and intentional damage. The report is part of the organizations’ campaign to push the Israeli government to assert control over these sites.

Bonus Reads

  1. “Saving Masafer Yatta: The Fight Against Expulsion” (Mondoweiss)
  2. “Military Rule: Testimonies of soldiers from the Civil Administration, Gaza DCL and COGAT (2011-2021)” (Breaking the Silence)
  3. “Palestinian family encircled by Israeli settlement” (Al-Monitor)

 

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

July 28, 2022

1. Israel High Court Greenlights Theft of Palestinian Private Land

2. Masafer Yatta

3. Israel Advances New East Jerusalem Settlement Plans

4. Grab Bag

5. Bonus Read

Israel High Court Greenlights Theft of Palestinian Private Land

Supreme Court overturns its decision in the case of Mitzpe Kramim – enabling retroactive authorization of the outpost on private Palestinian land (Yesh Din 7/28/22)

“This ruling overtly indicates Israel’s intentions to continue to pursue retroactive legalization of illegal Israeli construction in blatant disregard of the rights of the local Palestinian population of the West Bank. The State of Israel continues to ignore the duties bestowed upon it by IHL, as the occupying power, to protect the occupied population. Additionally, as the occupying power, Israel is prohibited from transferring the occupier’s population into occupied territory.

“The interpretation of the Supreme Court’s majority opinion will, in practice, undoubtedly serve to fulfill the intentions of the repealed Regularization Bill from 2017. It will enable settlers, backed by the Civil Administration and other State authorities, to take over thousands of dunams of Palestinian land, leading to human rights violations on a massive scale all over the West Bank and serving as the basis for future negligent and illegal policies, which are now more likely to be given the go-ahead by the Supreme Court. This ruling symbolizes a turning point of Israel’s Supreme Court, which, for the first time, has endorsed the forced confiscation of privately owned land, which is not required for military needs, for the sole purpose of use by Israeli civilians for the establishment of a new settlement.”

Israel’s Top Court Reverses Ruling on West Bank Outpost, Allowing Settlers to Stay [“Two years ago the court ruled that the Mitzpeh Kramim outpost could not be recognized because the sale of its lands to settlers was not made in ‘good faith,’ but an expanded panel now reversed that ruling”] (Haaretz 7/27/22)

More reports: Times of Israel, Middle East Eye, i24 News, Middle East Monitor

Masafer Yatta

Israel Advances New East Jerusalem Settlement Plans

Grab Bag

Bonus Read

Report to the UN Security Council (Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Lynn Hastings 7/26/22; also see UN press release)

Excerpt:

“Mister President, Settler-related violence continued during the reporting period, with particularly concerning incidents in the West Bank community of Ras al-Tin. On the night of 6 July, individuals believed to be Israeli settlers set fire to four points around the community, damaging several structures, including tents. The attack comes on the heels of additional settler attacks against the community in recent weeks, during which two residents were injured. I reiterate that perpetrators of all acts of violence must be held accountable and brought swiftly to justice. I also reiterate that security forces must exercise maximum restraint and use lethal force only when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life. Mister President, On 20 and 21 July, thousands of Israelis participated in a widely publicized campaign by a settler organization to establish settlement outposts across the West Bank. In advance of the campaign, Israeli Defense Minister Gantz issued a statement that such efforts “are illegal activities that the security services are preparing to thwart.” The Israel Defense Forces and Israeli police also issued similar statements. On 21 July, ISF removed the seven makeshift encampments that had been set up and evacuated the Israeli civilians from the area. I welcome the statements and actions by the Government of Israel to prevent the establishment of new outposts. I reiterate that all settlements are illegal under international law and remain a substantial obstacle to peace.

“Mister President, During the reporting period, Israeli authorities demolished, seized or forced owners to demolish 77 Palestinian-owned structures in Area C and five in East Jerusalem, displacing 61 Palestinians, including 31 children. The demolitions were carried out due to the lack of Israeli-issued building permits, which are nearly impossible for Palestinians to obtain. In the wake of the 4 May ruling by the Israeli High Court of Justice allowing the eviction of the communities in Masafer Yatta in the southern West Bank to proceed due to their presence in an Israeli-declared “firing zone”, Israeli forces continued to adopt restrictive measures negatively affecting Palestinian communities and humanitarian actors providing support. Such measures include ongoing military training, related movement restrictions, arrests, including those involving use of force, as well as restrictions on the access of staff of international organizations and Palestinian NGOs to the area. I remain deeply concerned by the potential implications of the High Court’s ruling and the humanitarian toll on the communities in question if the eviction orders are carried out.”

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

July 21, 2022

1. Settlers Announce, Fundraise for, & Carry Out Plans to Break Israeli Law

2. Masafer Yatta

3. Around the West Bank

4. Grab Bag

5. EU Sounds the Alarm Re: Settlements

6. Bonus Read

Settlers Announce, Fundraise for, & Carry Out Plans to Break Israeli Law

The Settlers Trumpeted Their Plans [also see coverage in past editions of FMEP’s Settlement & Annexation Report]

  • How a Jewish Settler Group Raised Millions to Set Up Illegal Outposts (Haaretz 7/21/22) [“The Nachala settler organization announced that it would set up three West Bank outposts on Wednesday. Even though this is illegal, it raised five million shekels for the operation in three days through affiliated groups, a money transfer app and a Chabad crowdfunding platform”]

The Israeli Government Responded Weakly & Too Late

The Settlers Did **Exactly What They Said They Would Do**

The Aftermath: Land Grab, Palestinians’ Fears, Politicians’ Praise

Masafer Yatta

Around the West Bank

Grab Bag

EU Sounds the Alarm re: Settlements

Summary:

In comparison to the previous year, 2021 experienced an even higher rate of settlement units advancements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem (22,030), enforcing the trend of a continuously increasing settlement expansion on occupied Palestinian territories. Adding to the exponentially high figures in 2021 were particularly the advancement of settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem, which more than doubled compared to the previous year, from 6,288 housing units to 14,894. 

This trend of deepening settlement projects through plans and tenders occurred despite the announcement by the new Israeli government, which started its tenure on 13 June 2021, that it would be committed to a status quo when it comes to occupation-related matters.

The advancement, in 2021, in particular of three settlements – E1, Atarot and Lower Aqueduct – is a serious cause of concern. The settlements, if constructed, would disconnect East Jerusalemites from major West Bank urban areas, such as Hebron and Ramallah, and would thus have serious implications on Palestinian urban continuity and pose a serious threat to a viable two-state solution. 

Other trends and developments contributing to settlement expansion in the reporting period included advancements of infrastructure and road projects as well as the establishment of new illegal so called outpost farms. The rise in settlement expansion plans by the Israeli authorities was also accompanied by a worrisome trend of rising settler violence in the oPt. 

As outlined in several statements by the EEAS Spokesperson on new settlements announcements in 2021, the EU has repeatedly called on Israel to end all settlement activity, and to dismantle outposts erected since March 2001. It remains the EU’s firm position that settlements are illegal under international law. Israel’s decision to advance plans for the approval and construction of almost new settlement units in 2021, i.a. for Givat Hamatos and  Har Homa,  further undermines the prospects of a viable two-state solution.

Bonus Read

End-of-Mission Statement of the UN Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices (UN Human Rights Council 7/15/22)

Settlement-related excerpts:

“The Special Committee’s visit took place in the context of increasing settler violence and Israeli security force violence against Palestinians, arbitrary arrests and detention, and restrictions on the freedom of expression and movement, as well as a deepening culture of impunity. The Special Committee was briefed that in the first half of 2022, Israeli forces killed 60 Palestinians in the West Bank in the context of law enforcement operations, compared to 41 in the same period in 2021. Israel continues to hold the bodies of 325 Palestinians, denying families burials and closure. Settler violence has continued to increase at an alarming rate. 575 incidents of settler violence resulting in Palestinian deaths, injury and/or property damage were reported between 1 June 2021 and 31 May 2022, compared to 430 in the previous year. Perpetrators are very rarely held accountable. Gross violations of Palestinian human rights, including the right to self-determination, are the result of discriminatory and systematic policies and practices negatively impacting almost every aspect of Palestinian life.”

“Illegal Israeli settlements have also continued to expand, resulting in demolitions of Palestinian-owned structures and displacement of the Palestinian residents, notwithstanding UN Security Council resolution 2334 condemning such practices. The Special Committee was informed that Israel has established or allowed the establishment of 279 settlements, outposts or satellite neighbourhoods in the West Bank, facilitating settlement population growth to approximately 700,000. Israeli and international settler organisations actively promote settlements and recruit prospective settlers, and are offered tax incentives. New settlement housing units continue to proliferate, and in May 2022, Israeli authorities advanced plans for the construction of more than 4,000 settlement housing units in Area C. The expansion of settlements has resulted in a commensurate increase in the demolition of Palestinian structures. The Special Committee was briefed that since the beginning of 2022, 387 Palestinian structures, including 68 donor-funded structures, were demolished, displacing 496 Palestinians. Only five percent of construction plans submitted by Palestinians in Area C are reportedly approved by the Israeli authorities. The Special Committee was also informed that in addition to settlement housing units, private land owned by Palestinians is often seized for the purpose of building infrastructure, such as roads, highways and walls, to connect settlements, or creating natural reserves or national parks. As reiterated by the Secretary-General, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Security Council and other UN bodies, settlement activities are a flagrant violation of international law and must immediately cease.”

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

July 14, 2022

1. Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid & the Biden visit

2. Target: The Ramallah Area

3. Target: Masafer Yatta

4. Around the West Bank

Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid & the Biden Visit

Jerusalem

West Bank (general)

Outposts

Masafer Yatta

The Settlers

Target: The Ramallah Area

Target: Masafer Yatta

Around the West Bank

 

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

July 7, 2022

1. Settlements & the Biden visit

2. Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid in the International Debate

3. Settler/IDF Violence

4. Ben & Jerry’s vs. Settlements

5. Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

6. Around the West Bank

7. Bonus Read

Settlements & the Biden Visit

Urgent: Illegal plan of at least 33 Israeli right-wing organizations to establish at least 10 new outposts in the West Bank on July 20 (Yesh Din, 7/7/22) [“This plan is being promoted by at least 33 Israeli right-wing movements and bodies, including regional and local municipalities in the West Bank. In preparation for this ‘operation’, Nachala has held multiple conferences,  as well as a number of surveying tours to scope out potential sites for the outposts. Potential sites include Wadi Kana, Uriyad (potentially to expand an existing outpost), lands belonging to the Palestinian village of Iskaka, Neve Beniya, Givat Ha’or and Ma’alot Halhul. Media reports indicate that over 1,000 settlers are involved in the establishment of these outposts. More recently, Nachala has launched campaigns inviting the public to participate in this operation. Although Israeli authorities are well aware of the plan, as far as we know, no actions have been taken to stop this operation, and thus to prevent its catastrophic consequences. Furthermore, no public condemnation nor call has been made to the public to refrain from this illegal activity….”

29 US lawmakers urge Biden to prevent Israeli construction of “doomsday” settlements in W. Bank’s E1 (Quds Network 7/6/22)

Fate of E1 construction plan postponed as Israel gears up for Biden visit (Jewish News Syndicate 7/6/22)

B’Tselem Twitter thread 7/6/22 (reminding the world of 5/14/22 Haaretz article – How a Settlement Outpost Is Born) – excerpt: “The settlement movement is planning a major action, to take place 2 weeks from now: they say they’re going to set up *at least 10 unauthorized outposts* on the night of July 19-20th. These outposts will even be illegal by Israeli standards, not to mention int’l law. The idea of outposts is to create facts on the ground: to take land – often privately-owned Palestinian agricultural land – and build on it, fast, making it extremely difficult for the Israeli authorities (particularly when it’s a weak transitional gov’t) to evict them…Back to the plans for July 20th: we’re not talking about some secret, underground plan. This has been widely advertised & celebrated by the settler movement as a major event. There’s been a big conference about it, fundraising, scouting trips, banners placed all over the oPt etc. [images] And before someone jumps in to say “it’s just a fringe group of extremists! They don’t represent all settlers”—here’s the thing: this plan has the backing of all the major settler regional councils (which get State funding) as well as some of the biggest youth movements in Israel [image]…”]

Israel pushes off contentious E1 settlement project amid US pressure (Times of Israel 7/4/22) [“Israeli authorities on Monday announced that they had delayed a hearing to advance a controversial settlement project in an area of the West Bank that critics say is essential to a future Palestinian state. The session of the Civil Administration’s High Planning Subcommittee — the Defense Ministry body that authorizes settlement construction — was scheduled to take place on July 18, just four days after US President Joe Biden’s trip to Israel and the West Bank. The meeting, during which the panel will hear objections to a massive housing project on the swath of land known as E-1, has been rescheduled for September 12.”]Also see Tweet from FMEP’s Lara Friedman: “On same day they publicly absolved Israel of any accountability for killing an American citizen journalist, the Biden Admin can also celebrate convincing Israel to delay moving ahead with massive new settlement plan long enough to not create awkwardness in Biden visit.”

Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid in the International Debate

How Israel’s Campaign Against the ‘Apartheid’ Label Threatens Free Speech (DAWN 7/5/22)

US Presbyterian Church declares Israel to be ‘apartheid state’ (Middle East Monitor 7/4/22) Also see: Christian groups protest move by Presbyterian Church (USA) accusing Israel of apartheid (Jewish News Syndicate 7/6/22)

Israeli Apartheid: The power of the frame, the shame of the name (Mondoweiss 7/4/22)

Pastor wants to ‘convert the Church to love the Torah, Jews’ (Jerusalem Post 7/3/22) [“One of the main Bible prophecies is helping Jews return to the nation of Israel, so we started working with Keren Hayesod with projects such as making aliyah. We help settlements take over produce farms in the West Bank, which is Judea and Samaria.”]

NBC Corrects: Israeli Settlements Not on ‘Palestinian Territory’ (CAMERA 6/30/22) [“CAMERA’s Israel office this week prompted correction of an NBC article which erroneously cited “Jewish settlements on occupied Palestinian territory” (“Netanyahu is again center stage as Israel heads towards elections,” June 22)…NBC agreed that a correction was in order, and subsequently amended the text to accurately refer to “Jewish settlements on disputed territory Palestinians hope will form part of a future state.” In addition, editors commendably appending the following clarification to the bottom of the article: “CLARIFICATION (June 29, 2022, 12:23 p.m. ET): This article has been changed to reflect that Jewish settlements are on disputed land that Palestinians hope will form part of a future state.”]

Settler/IDF Violence

Settlers assault Palestinian family south of Hebron (WAFA 7/7/22)

Israel Police Downgrade Suspicions Against Settler Arrested for Killing Palestinian (Haaretz 7/5/22)

Israel settlers, police attack Sheikh Jarrah protest (Middle East Monitor 7/2/22)

Palestinian elderly brutally assaulted by Israeli settlers near Tulkarm (WAFA 7/3/22)

Ben & Jerry’s vs. Settlements

Ben & Jerry’s sues parent company in bid to block deal allowing sales in settlements (Times of Israel 7/6/22)

Ben & Jerry’s Clashes With Unilever Over BDS (Jewish Currents 7/5/22)

Yair Lapid’s ‘Antisemitic’ Zigzag (Haaretz 7/3/22) [“…what is being sold to us as an Israeli victory over the boycott movement is actually a compromise between Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s, according to which the original American brand will be severed from the Israeli company that markets the ice cream, so that it doesn’t mention Unilever anymore. The local version will no longer carry the brand name in English. This spectacular Israeli victory means that in the name of defending the settlements, the original brand has been withdrawn from the entire country.”]

Ben & Jerry’s criticises resumption of sales in Israeli settlements (BBC 7/1/22)

Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

After visiting communities in Masafer Yatta, diplomats say forced displacement violates international law (WAFA 7/7/22)

Tweet from Basel al-Adra 7/6/22: “I wake up, go outside, and see this newly painted sign near my home: ‘Firing zone! Entrance Forbidden!’ Israel’s insane plan to evict thousands of us from Masafer Yatta and make our towns a firing zone is happening on the ground, funded by USA & Europe. It’s like we’re air.”

Fact sheet: Masafer Yatta communities at risk of forcible transfer (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 7/6/22)

Israel expelled my father from Masafer Yatta 20 years ago. Now it’s happening again (+972 Magazine 7/4/22) [“More than two decades have passed since my father was first kicked out of his home. Now that the Supreme Court approved his second expulsion, I spoke to him about how the decision fits into our family’s story of resistance.”]

Israeli occupation forces raid Masafer Yatta community, demolish a residence displacing 15 people (WAFA 7/4/22) — for video, see Tweet from Basel Al Adra 7/4/22

Israeli troops crackdown on anti-expulsion rally in Masafer Yatta, dozens injured (WAFA 7/1/22)

Sami Huraini: ‘Israeli detention won’t stop my resistance!’ (Stop the Wall, 6/29/22)

Around the West Bank

(JORDAN VALLEY) Israel orders halt on house construction south of Tubas (WAFA 7/7/22)

(HEBRON) Israeli forces bulldoze agricultural land, destroy olive trees in Hebron-area village

(WAFA 7/5/22)

(NABLUS) In its efforts to keep Palestinian water resources under its control, Israel destroys water spring pipelines (WAFA 7/5/22]

(RAMALLAH) Israeli occupation forces raze several dunums of privately-owned Palestinian land near Ramallah (WAFA 7/5/22) Also see Tweet from B’Tselem’s Sarit Michaeli: “The Israeli army cut down Palestinian owned olive trees in the village Ni’lin. Seems that the military-colonial complex will not rest until it alleviates Palestinians of all their property” [linked to photos]

(JERUSALEM) Palestinian-owned house, nursery demolished by Israeli bulldozers in occupied Jerusalem (WAFA 7/4/22)

(HEBRON) Israeli forces issue halt-on-construction orders for two homes near Hebron (WAFA 7/3/22)

(JERICHO) Israeli actions threaten historic spring near Jericho (Al-Monitor 7/3/22)

Israeli forces seize farming equipment, machinery from Jericho-district village (WAFA 7/1/22)

(HEBRON) Israeli settlers destroy hundreds of saplings north of Hebron (WAFA 6/30/22)

(BETHLEHEM) Settlers set lands on fire west of Bethlehem (WAFA 6/30/22)

Israeli forces deliver stop-construction notices against two houses, shed south of Hebron (WAFA 6/30/22)

Bonus Read

Protection of Civilians Report | 14-27 June 2022 (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 7/2/22)

“...On 21 June, an Israeli settler stabbed and killed a 28-year-old Palestinian man in Iskaka village (Salfit). A clash erupted between Palestinians and settlers who were setting up tents to take over Palestinian-owned land near the Israeli settlement of Ariel, during which a settler stabbed the man in his chest. Israeli forces prevented Palestinians from providing medical aid or approaching the victim for about thirty minutes. The Israeli Police launched an investigation and arrested a suspect the following day.”…

“Overall, 195 Palestinians, including ten children, were injured by Israeli forces across the West Bank. Some 75 injuries were recorded near Beita and Beit Dajan (both in Nablus) and Kisan (Bethlehem), in demonstrations against settlement expansion and 30 injuries were recorded during a during a tree-planting event in Burin (Nablus). In another three incidents, in Qaryut and Huwwara (both in Nablus), and in Ras at Tin (Ramallah), 64 Palestinians were injured by Israeli forces after Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian communities accompanied by Israeli forces, triggering confrontations with residents. Another 23 Palestinians were injured during seven search-and-arrest operations in Jenin, Jericho, Tulkarm, Qalqiliya, Bethlehem and Ramallah. A further three Palestinians, including one child, were injured in three separate incidents near a checkpoint between the H1 and H2 areas in Hebron city, at a flying checkpoint Khirbet al Majaz in southern Hebron, and near the barrier in Far’un (Tulkarm). Of all the Palestinian injuries, 14 were from live ammunition, and 13 from rubber bullets; most of the remainder were treated for inhaling teargas.

“The Israeli authorities demolished, confiscated or forced people to demolish 39 Palestinian-owned structures in East Jerusalem and Area C of the West Bank, citing the lack of Israeli-issued building permits; nine of the structures had been provided as donor-funded humanitarian aid. As a result, 12 people, including six children, were displaced, and the livelihoods of about 225 others were affected. Some 36 of the targeted structures were in Area C, including 19 structures in Ibziq area which is designated as a ‘firing zone’ for military training, and where Palestinian communities are at risk of forcible transfer. Three structures were demolished in East Jerusalem, including one home destroyed by its owners to avoid paying fines.

“On four occasions, Israeli forces conducted military training exercises near the 13 Palestinian herding communities of Masser Yatta in southern Hebron. This area has been designated by the Israeli authorities as a ‘firing zone’ and closed for Israeli military training. The training is expected to continue intermittently for a month, restricting the access of Palestinians to basic services and sources of food, and possibly risking their safety, as use of live fire and explosions was reported on two occasions. On 4 May, the Israeli High Court of Justice approved the eviction of Palestinians living in Massafer Yatta, putting 1,144 people, including 569 children, at imminent risk of forcible transfer. On 23 June, the Humanitarian Coordinator a.i., called for a halt to demolitions, military activities and other increasingly coercive measures, so that residents can remain in their homes in safety and dignity.

“Israeli forces restricted the movement of Palestinians in several locations across the West Bank. Since 10 June, Israeli forces have blocked and closed the main gate installed at the main entrance to the village of Abud (Ramallah), disrupting the access of about 2,400 Palestinians to livelihoods and services and forcing long detours; this closure is presumably linked to Palestinian stone-throwing at Israeli settler vehicles. On four other occasions, Israeli forces blocked the main entrance to Al Jalazun refugee camp (Ramallah), disturbing the access of about 9,000 Palestinians to livelihoods and services, forcing long detours; subsequently, Israeli forces shot teargas canisters at residents who threw stones; in one of the incidents a teargas canister landed inside a balcony, causing a fire to break out in the house…

“Israeli settlers injured 18 Palestinians, and people known or believed to be Israeli settlers damaged Palestinian property in eleven instances. In five incidents in Turmus’ayya, Ras at Tin and Al Mu’arrajat East (all in Ramallah), in Burqa (Nablus) and in the H2 area of Hebron city, Israeli settlers, attacked Palestinian farmers while the latter were working on their lands; settlers used sticks, batons, and metal bars, and threw stones, injuring twelve Palestinians, including one child. On 15 June, Israeli settlers physically assaulted and pepper-sprayed family members sitting in a car that stopped in an Israeli flying checkpoint near Duma (Nablus); three of them were injured, including a two-month-old baby. The following day, dozens of Israelis, including settlers physically assaulted and stabbed two Palestinian men while they were working in an Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem. In an additional incident near Deir Sharaf (Nablus), a group of Israeli settlers physically assaulted a group of Palestinian residents, injuring one man. In six incidents, about 160 Palestinian-owned trees were uprooted or vandalized near Israeli settlements next to Qaryut and Burin (both in Nablus), Palestinian-owned cars and a tractor were vandalized, and stone-throwing was reported, causing damage to two Palestinians homes and shops. Another five incidents, in Nablus, Jenin and Ramallah, included settlers breaking into a house and farmland, damaging a water facility, and vandalizing at least ten vehicles, as well as cultivated crops.

“People known or believed to be Palestinians injured two Israelis and damaged multiple Israeli vehicles. Two Israeli settlers were injured by stone-throwing at vehicles while traveling on West Bank roads in Hebron and Jerusalem governorates. Israeli-platted vehicles were damaged by stones or Molotov cocktails thrown at them in seven other incidents.”

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

June 30, 2022

1. Settlements & the Biden visit

2. Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid at the Center of Domestic Israeli Politics

3. Settler/IDF Violence

4. Ben & Jerry’s vs. Settlements

5. Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

6. Around the West Bank

7. Jerusalem & Its Environs

8. Bonus reads

Settlements & the Biden Visit

Israeli settlers are acting in advance of Biden’s visit and another election (Middle East Eye 6/28/22)

Old City hotelier facing eviction: ‘Biden, give Christians 10 minutes of your visit’ (Times of Israel 6/27/22)

Israeli settlement plan in West Bank stirs tensions ahead of Biden trip (Al-Monitor 6/24/22)

Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid at the Center of Domestic Israeli Politics

How the Bennett-Lapid Government Ruled Over the West Bank (Haaretz 6/26/22) [“The presence of left-wing parties in the coalition did little to hinder the ‘change government’ from continuing construction in the West Bank and destroying Palestinian residences”]

How threats of a second Nakba went mainstream (+972 Magazine 6/23/22)

Settler/IDF Violence

Israeli settlers destroy hundreds of saplings north of Hebron (WAFA 6/30/22)

Settlers throw stones at Palestinian’s home; security forces then arrest and abuse him for 72 hours (B’Tselem 6/26/22)

Israeli settlers set fire to Palestinian vehicles (Middle East Monitor 6/26/22)

Re: Alleged murder of a Palestinian last week by a settler

Video report: Palestinian family in Hebron traumatised after repeated Israeli settler attacks (Middle East Eye 6/24/22)

Ben & Jerry’s vs. Settlements

Sale puts Ben & Jerry’s ice cream back in West Bank, kind of (Associated Press, 6/29/22)

Ben & Jerry’s Israel, Unilever reach deal to end settlement boycott (Times of Israel 6/29/22)

Tweet from FMEP’s Lara Friedman 6/29/22: “Based on reports, hard to see why this is being spun as a victory by anti-BDS folks. In effect this marks B&J – the intl brand’s – complete withdrawal from both Israel & West Bank, replaced by a wholly distinct Israeli brand (permitted to sell ONLY in Israel & WB).”

Israel’s claim it defeated Ben & Jerry’s melts under scrutiny (Electronic Intifada 6/29/22)

Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

‘They’re not arriving with trucks to deport us, but the goal is the same’ (+972 Magazine 6/29/22) [“From holding a mini-census to confiscating vehicles, the Israeli army is reminding the residents of Masafer Yatta who rules their lives.”]

Israeli settlers, forces assault activists involved in tree planting activity in Masafer Yatta (WAFA 6/29/22)

Israel orders halt on construction of three dwellings in Masafer Yatta (WAFA 6/28/22)

B’Tselem thread 6/28/22: “After Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled the state can expel some 1,000 Palestinians from their homes in an area it designated ‘Firing Zone 918’ in Masafer Yatta, the military informed the Palestinian DCO that troops will be training in the area for a month. Every Tuesday and Wednesday, from 12:00 to 6:00 P.M. On the morning of 21 June 2022, the military placed targets around the community of Khirbet al-Maghaz. According to residents, some of the targets were placed on a water container, on a tractor wagon and on sheaves of straw. At around 3:00 P.M., two Merkava tanks approached the community along with an infantry troop. The force advanced slowly, with the tanks emitting blue camouflage smoke and damaging farmland. When it was about 100 to 150 meters from the community, it turned back and left. On 22 June 2022, at around 12:00 P.M., a military force left a base within Israel’s borders and headed northeast, arriving at an area that lies between the communities of Khirbet al-Markaz and Khirbet Jenbah in Masafer Yatta. Upon arrival, the force, which included tanks and two bulldozers, stayed motionless for some three hours. It then advanced into farmland and entered a harvested wheat field. Community residents heard explosions, apparently caused by shelling from the tanks.The force then advanced east to the outskirts of Khirbet al-Fakhit, where it stopped for about 15 minutes, during which about 20 infantry soldiers trained in the fields with a helicopter flying low above them. The soldiers destroyed part of a wheat field that had not yet been harvested. Several activists protested the training. Soldiers pushed some of them, knocking them to the ground. Two Israeli activists were detained for about 15 minutes. This week the training has resumed. For more information on the high court ruling: Supreme Court rules: Israel above the law”

Activists who interrupted IDF military training accused of ‘endangering lives’ (Israel Hayom 6/24/22) [“Video circulating on social media shows soldiers shoving and dragging away activists that entered the area of the military training illegally.”]

Around the West Bank

Palestinian families ordered to leave their homes in Jordan Valley during Israeli military training (WAFA 6/29/22)

Israeli settlers steal 10 dunums of Palestinian-owned land south of Bethlehem (WAFA 6/28/22)

Israeli occupation forces demolish agricultural facilities in the south of West Bank town (WAFA 6/28/22)

Israeli occupation forces demolish a Palestinian-owned water pond used to irrigate a grape field (WAFA 6/27/22)

Demolition of Palestinian-owned structures reported in Jordan Valley community (WAFA 6/27/22)

Jerusalem and Its Environs

The court ordered the state to address the question of the legality of the declaration of the Sumarin family home as an Absentee’s Property (Peace Now 6/30/22)

Israel demolishes seven Palestinian-owned structures near Jerusalem (WAFA 6/29/22)

Podcast – E1, E1, E1 (Terrestrial Jerusalem/Axis Mundi, ft. Danny Seidemann 6/29/22) [“It’s all about E1 on this episode of Axis Mundi—the contentious settlement proposal is back in the headlines ahead of a July Israeli Civil Administration planning meeting. Evan Gottesman speaks with TJ’s Danny Seidemann about E1, its geopolitical relationship with Jerusalem, and its impact on a future two-state outcome—plus, what all this means for U.S. President Joe Biden’s upcoming visits to Israel and Saudi Arabia.”’]

Ir Amim Twitter thread 6/28/22: “The Israeli Supreme Court will hold a hearing regarding the Sumreen Family. For 30 years they been in a legal battle against their forced eviction from their home in Wadi Hilweh, Silwan at the hands of the KKL-JNF in coordination with the settler org ELAD. The Sumreen Family’s story is intertwined w the worst of Israeli policies to consolidate Israeli control over the Old City Basin & erase Palestinian presence, narrative & identity from this area.”

In a Dramatic Development, Israel Initiates Settlement of Land Title Procedure on Land Adjacent to Al Aqsa and Across Abu Thor (Ir Amim & Bimkom, 6/27/22) [“the initiation of the process in Abu Thor and in the Umayyad palaces excavations/Ophel archeological site is a dramatic development, severely increasing the risk of state appropriation of Palestinian properties and threatening to further destabilize the conditions in Jerusalem and the region.”] Also see:

  • Israel Moves to Register Lands Near Al-Aqsa Using Funds Earmarked for Palestinians (Haaretz 6/26/22) [“The registration process – carried out using funds earmarked for narrowing economic disparities and improving the quality of life of Palestinian residents of Jerusalem – could spark protests from the Muslim religious trust that administers the Al-Aqsa mosque compound”]
  • No Change for East Jerusalem (Haaretz editorial 6/38/22) [“...the Justice Ministry used the budget intended to improve the situation of the Palestinian residents of the capital to accelerate the ‘Judaization’ of the eastern part of the city. If anyone hoped that the ‘government of change’ would stop the process, they were wrong. During the tenure of Gideon Sa’ar as justice minister the situation only grew worse. Three weeks ago, things advanced further when the official in charge of land registration published a plan to begin to register land ownership in the Ophel Archaeological Park, adjacent to the wall of the Temple Mount and Al-Aqsa Mosque. Not only is this the most sensitive piece of land in Jerusalem – the Palestinians and the Jordanian Waqf Islamic trust in any case are convinced that Israel wants to use this area to damage their status on the Temple Mount – this is an area where clearly no Palestinian could register ownership. Those who could benefit from it, again, are the entities active in tourism and archaeology at the site, first and foremost Elad, which recently received more government funding to excavate a channel that will reach the Ophel park.”]

A Game-Changing Achievement: “Mukhtar Protocol” Canceled (Regavim 6/26/22) [“Attorney Boaz Arzi, Director of Regavim’s Legal Division, added: ‘The State of Israel should have conducted full regulation procedures for all properties in Jerusalem immediately upon the city’s reunification, and the foot-dragging has resulted in the loss of thousands of dunams of land to fraudulent claims and the erosion of governance…’”]  Also see:

Israeli authorities force Palestinian to demolish his own house in East Jerusalem neighborhood (WAFA 6/26/22)

Bonus Reads

Palestine Under Occupation III: Mapping Israel’s Policies and Practices and their Economic Repercussions in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (UN/ESCWA June 2022)

“Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian Territory constitute a matrix of control and domination, that seeks to control the land and dominate the people; a matrix comprising policies and practices that, in violation of international law, have fragmented the Palestinian people and the occupied territory and eviscerated the economy rendering it asymmetrically dependent on Israel. A rights-based approach to development and relief efforts grounded in human rights and international law is therefore called for.”

AP Photos: Israel’s separation barrier, 20 years on (Associated Press 6/267/22) [photo essay] Text intro:

“Twenty years after Israel decided to build its controversial separation barrier, the network of walls, fences and closed military roads remains in place, even as any partition of the land appears more remote than ever. Israel is actively encouraging its Jewish citizens to settle on both sides of the barrier as it builds and expands settlements deep inside the occupied West Bank, more than a decade after the collapse of any serious peace talks. Palestinians living under decades of military occupation, meanwhile, clamor for work permits inside Israel, where wages are higher. Some 100,000 Palestinians legally cross through military checkpoints, mainly to work in construction, manufacturing and agriculture.”

Israel settlers escape high prices by shopping in West Bank (Middle East Monitor 6/25/22)

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

June 23, 2022

1. Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid at the Center of Domestic Israeli Politics

2. Settler/IDF Violence

3. Expanding/Consolidating De Facto Annexation & Apartheid

4. Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

5. Jerusalem & Its Environs

6. Bonus reads

Settlements/Annexation/Apartheid at the Center of Domestic Israeli Politics

The Settlement Enterprise and the Demise of Israel’s Post-Netanyahu Government (J Street/Dr. Debra Shushan)

Knesset defeats two bills to apply sovereignty to West Bank settlements (Jerusalem Post 6/22/22) [“Education Minister Yifat Shasha-Biton (New Hope), who spoke on behalf of the government, chastised Smotrich and Karhi for bringing forward the bills. She reminded them that Likud party head Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed to suspend sovereignty plans when he was prime minister in exchange for the Abraham Accords, under whose rubric Israel normalized ties with four Arab states. These sovereignty bills, she said, are an example of ‘national irresponsibility.’ This is an attempt to undermine the upcoming visit of US President Joe Biden, Biton said. She accused Smotrich and Karhi of pushing forward the sovereignty issue to salvage their conscience for voting against a directive that extended residency rights of settlers for five years, thereby allowing them to operate as though they lived within Israel’s sovereign borders.”]

How Netanyahu and apartheid brought down Israel’s government (+972 Magazine 6/22/22) [“At the end of the month, Israel’s ‘emergency regulations,’ ”a set of temporary laws that establish legal segregation between Jewish settlers and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, which has been renewed every five years by every government for 55 years, were set to expire. The opposition decided to vote against renewing what have been dubbed by some the “apartheid regulations,” which they fully support in principle, in order to spite the government and try to bring it down. At a press conference on Monday evening, Bennett stated that the threat of these regulations expiring is what prompted his decision to go to elections, since a breakdown in Israel’s regime of segregation and occupation would have caused ‘severe security damages and legal chaos.’ Now that the Knesset will be disbanded, the emergency regulations will be automatically renewed, leaving it up to the next Knesset to re-authorize them once again.”]

Explainer: Israel on course for another election (Reuters 6/21/22) [“The decisive deadlock was over the renewal of regulations that enable the legal administration of settlers in the occupied West Bank. They will be automatically extended if the decision to dissolve the Knesset passes before they expire at the end of June, according to the Israel Democracy Institute. Bennett said he did not want the settlers, because of political feuding, to find themselves under the same military rule as millions of Palestinians.”]

Lapid, Gantz now control the fate of settlers in Israel’s West Bank (Jerusalem Post 6/20/22)

Settler/IDF Violence

Eyewitnesses: Settler stabbed Palestinian to death as Israeli forces looked on [“Ali Hasan Harb was stabbed while settlers tried to erect a tent on his family’s land in the occupied West Bank, eyewitnesses say.”] (+972 Magazine 6/22/22) Also see:

Israeli Settler Indicted for Throwing Stones at Left-wing Activists (Haaretz 6/20/22)

‘I Got a Rock in the Face’: No Arrests After Series of Attacks on Palestinians in Jerusalem (Haaretz 6/20/22)

Israel settlers attack elderly West Bank Palestinian (Middle East Monitor 6/18/22)

Expanding/Consolidating De Facto Annexation & Apartheid

Bad Faith – The illegal outpost of Mitzpe Kramim and efforts to retroactively approve it (Yesh Din, 6/22/22) [“The unauthorized outpost of Mitzpe Kramim and the dubious process by which it was established did not appear out of thin air. Like other settlements built in the OPT, an entire system driven by the ideology of the settlement movement and involving a plethora of state agencies led to the installation of the outpost on privately owned Palestinian land and the subsequent concerted efforts to have it retroactively approved. This report takes a close look at how the Israeli authorities and the individuals who settled in the area worked together, using a pincer movement that combined legal efforts with practical steps on the ground to legitimize the landgrab.”]

No One Claims Responsibility Over Construction of Illegal Road in West Bank (Haaretz 6/22/22) Also see tweet from Kerem Navot’s Dror Etkes: “A settler wakes up one morning and decides that he wants to open 3 km road in land that belongs to hundreds of Palestinians who live nearby. So he does it. Welcome to the West Bank.”

Israel Begins Building Multi-million Shekel Wall in Northern West Bank (Haaretz 6/22/22) [“…The route of the wall will protrude deep into the West Bank, reaching Kfar Salem, and continue until the central Israel community of Bat Hefer.”] Also see: Israel building new stretch of concrete wall in West Bank (Middle East Monitor 6/22/22) [“

Palestine’s Tourism and Archeology Under Israel’s Colonial Occupation (PLO/Negotiations Affairs Department 6/20/22)

Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

Masafer Yatta Palestinians at increased risk since court ruling (UN/Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 6/23/22)

Expert Q&A: Israel’s Expulsion of Palestinians from Masafer Yatta (IMEU 6/22/22)

Masafer Yatta: An Israeli firing zone and the ancient Palestinian village fighting for survival (Middle East Eye 6/22/22)

Israeli army to proceed with Masafer Yatta drills despite Palestinian outrage (The New Arab 6/21/22)

Tweet (with video) from Youth of Sumud 6/21/22: “Right now Israeli tanks are between the villages in Masafer Yatta , Israeli occupation forces have commenced their military exercises in between villages of Masafer Yatta , as first steps in the demolition and mass forced eviction of the communities.”

Twitter thread (with photos) from Ori Givati (of Breaking the Silence) 6/21/22: “Yesterday the Israeli Supreme Court Chief Justice, Esther Chayut, approved a military exercise in Masafer Yatta, saying: ‘With regards to the safety measures detailed in order to prevent harm to people or property […] the instruction [is] not to pass through agricultural land….and to completely avoid passage through residential areas. Earlier today the IDF placed these shooting targets on private Palestinian property in the village of Majaz [includes photos]. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court may as well drive one of the tanks.”

Tweet (with photos) from B’tselem 6/21/22: “Today the military launched its training in Masafer Yatta, which is planned to last a whole month, by positioning targets, pictured here, on the vehicles and property of Palestinians from the community of al-Majaz.” 

Tweet (with photos) from Breaking the Silence 6/21/22: “Happening *right now* in Masafer Yatta: Major IDF training exercise, including the use of tanks, 100 meters from the village of Majaz. The 1,000+ residents of Majaz and seven other villages are in imminent danger of being evicted.”

UPDATE: Growing Fear that Israel Intends for the Mass Forced Transfer of the Masafer Yatta residents (ACRI 6/19/22)

 

Jerusalem & Its Environs

Demolitions in Jerusalem area, May 2022: Israeli authorities demolish 29 structures; 59 people, including 30 minors, lose homes (B’Tselem 6/23/22)

Sheikh Jarrah: Ethnic cleansing in Jerusalem (Mada Masr/Tareq Baconi 6/20/22)

A plan to build a settlement park east of Jerusalem is the last bullet into the two-state solution – Premier (WAFA 6/20/22)

Bonus reads

The Wild West – Grazing, seizing and looting by Israeli settlers in the West Bank (Kerem Navot May 2022 — pdf of full report; interactive map)

“This report describes and analyzes the development of Israeli sheep and cattle grazing in the West Bank, which has gradually become Israel’s most significant mechanism for dispossessing Palestinian communities. At issue are tens of thousands of acres of open areas expropriated by the Israeli authorities and settlers through dozens of shepherd outposts and farms, the great majority of which have been established over the past decade. As noted above, the use of grazing to seize land began in the early 1970s and it continued intermittently in the 1980s and 90s. In recent years, however, the phenomenon mushroomed in terms of area size, resources invested and destructive repercussions for the Palestinian communities.”

WhatsApp’s reclusive founder has quietly become a megadonor to Jewish causes – (Times of Israel 6/18/22)

“At least a few of his donations reflect his right-wing political views on Israel. Donations of $600,000 went to the Maccabee Task Force Foundation, an organization founded by the late Republican megadonor Sheldon Adelson to support Israel advocacy on college campuses. The foundation has also given $6 million to Friends of Ir David, the American fundraising arm of Elad, a group trying to expand Jewish settlement in parts of largely Arab East Jerusalem, and $175,000 to the Central Fund of Israel, which has been accused of supporting violent extremists in 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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

June 16, 2022

1. Biden Admin–Israel

2. Expanding/Consolidating De Facto Annexation & Apartheid

3. Settler/IDF Violence

4. Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

5. Settlements at the Center of Domestic Israeli Politics

6. Norway & the Accurate Labeling of Settlement Goods

7. Differentiation for We (Israeli Govt) but Not for Thee (everyone else)

8. Bonus Reads

Biden Admin–Israel

US Asks Israel to Dial Back Oppression of Palestinians—But Just During Biden’s Visit (Common Dreams 6/15/22) [“One critic wryly observed that Israel ‘can resume killing, dispossessing, and persecuting’ Palestinians ‘without restrictions once Biden leaves.’”]

US pushing Israel to avoid unilateral steps in lead-up to Biden visit (Times of Israel 6/15/22)

Scoop: U.S. asks Israel to avoid actions that could create tensions ahead of Biden visit (Axios 6/15/22) Also see Tweet from Terrestrial Jerusalem’s Daniel Seidemann: “Great news for Israel!! The final statutory hearing on E-1 – a move vetoed by every POTUS since 1996 and a move no Israeli govt dared make  – is scheduled for July 18, 3 days AFTER the Biden visit, so it’s cool! So Israel can go ahead w/ E-1.”

An unsettled matter in Biden’s Middle East (Politico 6/14/22) [“The lack of clarity about the Biden team’s views on the legality of settlements underscores, first, that Trump aides were savvy in making many of their moves toward the Israelis and Palestinians hard to switch back.”]

Expanding/Consolidating De Facto Annexation & Apartheid

B’tselem Twitter thread 6/16/22: “Throughout May 22, on orders of the Jerusalem Municipality and the Civil Administration, 29 structures were demolished in the parts of the West Bank annexed to Jerusalem’s municipal boundaries and in adjacent areas lying within the al-Quds District of the Palestinian Authority. The demolished structures included 20 homes, six of which were demolished by their owners. Twelve were occupied, and their demolition left 59 people, including 30 minors, homeless. Eight additional homes were under construction and slated to house a family of seven, including one minor, and for the future residence of five newly-wed young men. A part of another demolished home under construction was slated to house a young couple. The nine remaining structures were non-residential, and five were used for businesses that supported at least 45 people.”

Israeli authorities order four Palestinian siblings to evict [abandon] their land in a Bethlehem-area village of Wadi Fukin (WAFA 6/14/22)

Judea-Samaria leaders planning quarter-million acre national park (Israel Hayom 6/13/22) [“An ambitious new plan from leaders in Judea and Samaria calls for the establishment of a new national park on nearly 1 million dunams (247,000 acres) of land between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea, which would transform the area into a tourist attraction. The area in question begins in the west of Kochav Hashahar and extends to the Herodian site in eastern Gush Etzion. According to the plan, the park will include approximately half the land bordering the Dead Sea, from Qasr al-Yahud – the traditional site of Jesus’ baptism – to the Darga and Hazazon ravines. The territory is considered the only open land separating Judea and Samaria, and the political ramifications of implementing the new plan are still unclear.”]

Israel’s E1 Building Plan: The Most Strategic, Consensual – and Frozen – Project (Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs 6/13/22)

Settler/IDF Violence

Israeli settlers assault Palestinian in Nablus-district town & Two Palestinians sustain wounds in settler attack near Nablus (WAFA 6/16/22)

West Bank: How Nablus became the main hub for Israeli settler violence (Middle East Eye 6/16/22)

Under the Israeli Commander’s Nose: Nablus Has Become Settlers’ Violent Playground (Haaretz 6/15/22) [“Israeli defense officials are seeing a sharp rise in attacks on Palestinians, and settlers previously thought to be ‘mainstream’ are joining the ultra-radicals”]

Israeli settlers attack Palestinian commuters on a northern West Bank road (WAFA 6/14/22)

B’Tselem on Twitter 6/14/22: “This morning Mahmoud Rateb Hussein discovered that settlers had cut down eight ancient olive trees in his grove in Qaryut. Photo credit: the local council. For more updates on recent settler and military attacks in Qaryut: Settler Violence = State Violence”

The Settlers’ Brigade Commander (Haaretz 6/13/22)

Army stands by as settlers attack activists in Masafer Yatta (+972 Magazine 6/14/22) [“A settler smashed an activist’s car and returned safely to his outpost, after soldiers violently dispersed a protest against Palestinian expulsion.”]

Two Left-wing Activists Wounded as Settler Hurls Stones in the West Bank (Haaretz 6/10/22)

Twitter thread 6/10/22 with video of settler attack on activists

Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

IDF to Carry Out Live-fire War Games Around Several Palestinian Villages Under Threat of Eviction (Haaretz 6/16/22) Also see Tweet from Btselem: “Alternative headline: Israel continues efforts to expel Palestinians in Masafer Yatta”

The Israeli government is trying to destroy my village – we need your help (The Independent/Basel Adra, 6/15/22)

Israeli Army Raids Palestinian Villages for ‘Intel Mapping’ (After Cutting Practice of ‘Intel Mapping’) (Haaretz 6/14/22) [“During the raid, soldiers logged and photographed residents of Masafer Yatta, where 1,000 Palestinians face eviction. Residents worry the intel gathered will be used to expel them”]

Good Shepherd Collective thread on Twitter 6/14/22: “Last night, hours after delivering four new demolition orders to the people of Masafer Yatta who are facing the existential threat of forced displacement, Israeli forces raided the village of Atuwani after midnight. They woke sleeping children and parents with sound bombs. This is the most recent in a series of targeted raids on the village of Atuwani, a village known internationally for its resistance against settler-colonialism. The raids happen randomly, provoking fear and insecurity and creating lasting anxiety for community members. When we talk about systematic oppression, we cannot limit our analysis to physical violence, baseless and prolonged incarceration, and mass displacement. We must also consider the long term health impacts—the daily wear—of the violence and intimidation, the lack of security. These raids are an attempt to weaken the steadfastness of Palestinian communities that continue to demonstrate their refusal to be intimidated. We must #StandwithMasaferYatta to stand in solidarity as Palestinians #SaveMasaferYatta…”

Twitter thread from B’Tselem (with video) 6/12/22: “This is not a drill: Over the weekend, the Israeli military began what appears to have been preparations for the expulsion of some 1,000 Palestinian residents of Masafer Yatta. Starting Friday evening and throughout Saturday, soldiers arrived at the communities of Khirbet a-Taban, Khirbet al-Fakhit, Khirbet Khilet a-Dabe’, Khirbet a-Safai a-Tatha, Khirbet a-Safai al-Foqa, Khirbet al-Majaz and Khirbet Jenbah patrolling among the residents’ homes, photographing ID cards and demanding to know who lived in each house. For years, Israel has been implementing a policy designed to make the residents leave their homes in order to take over their land.Recently, Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled – in a judgment replete with lies, misrepresentation and errors – that there was no legal barrier to the expulsion. With this ruling in the background, the “census” conducted in Masafer Yatta over the weekend is a worrying development. Read more about the ruling allowing the State to commit a war crime: Supreme Court rules: Israel above the law”

Largest Palestinian Displacement in Decades Looms After Israeli Court Ruling (US News 6/12/22)

Settlements at the Center of Domestic Israeli Politics

Orbach will not vote with coalition until Judea and Samaria law passed (Arutz Sheva 6/13/22) [“Yamina faction chairman says he will not vote for coalition bills until Judea and Samaria Regulations law is passed.”]

Settlement councils demand Yesha leader quit over backing coalition West Bank bill (i24 News 6/13/22)

Yesha leader faces rebellion for backing coalition bill crucial to settlers (Times of Israel 6/13/22)

Infighting in Israel imperils legal safeguards from West Bank settlers (Washington Post 6/12/22)

Norway & the Accurate Labeling of Settlement Goods

A Reminder From Norway (Haaretz/Akiva Eldar 6/13/22)

Israel threatens Norway with ‘adverse’ impact following change in settlement labels (Middle East Monitor 6/13/22)

[Accurately] Labeling of Judea and Samaria goods is about discrimination, not law, say experts (Jewish News Syndicate 6/13/22)

Norway to label products from Israeli settlements (AFP 6/12/22)

Norway mandates labelling of products from Israeli settlements (Middle East Eye 6/12/22)

Arab League welcomes Norway’s decision to label products from Israeli settlements (Arab News 6/12/22)

Israel slams Norway’s move to label products from settlements (YNet/AFP 6/12/22)

Differentiation for We (Israeli Govt) but Not for Thee (everyone else)

Settlements excluded from EU cultural program joined by Israel (Israel Hayom 6/13/22)

Israel enters EU culture program which excludes West Bank settlements (Jerusalem Post 6/12/22)

Settlement Cultural Institutions Left Out of EU Deal May Get Israel’s Help (Haaretz 6/12/22)

Israel bristles as Norway mandates labels for produce from West Bank, Golan (Times of Israel 6/11/22)

Bonus Reads

Hidden In Plain Sight: US Nonprofits As Drivers of Illegal Israeli Settlements (Just Security/Elana Hodges 6/10/22)

“…So far, U.S. nonprofits that are responsible for funneling hundreds of millions of dollars to sustain and expand illegal Israeli settlements have largely escaped scrutiny. Indeed, these organizations maintain 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, providing them access to substantial tax breaks. While these nonprofits have so far evaded legal or other material consequences, their activity has been a source of longstanding efforts to seek redress against them. U.S. tax law is a promising and largely untapped source of accountability…”

Booklet #261: An Example of Israel’s Legal System in the West Bank (Arab Center Washington/Jonathan Kuttab 6/13/22)

“The maintenance of separate legal and administrative structures for Israeli settlements and Palestinian communities in the occupied West Bank is well documented in the booklets that Israel uses to “legislate” in the occupied territories. Importantly, this practice meets the very definition of apartheid as detailed in international law, while the settlements themselves are also illegal. An examination of Booklet #261 and other Israeli “legislation” in the occupied territories therefore not only offers a detailed look at a crucial aspect of the occupation, but it also provides the opportunity to witness apartheid in action. Moreover, the booklets themselves could provide crucial evidence of Israel’s crime, should the country ever be brought before the International Criminal Court.”

 

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.

**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**

June 9, 2022

1. E-1 & Al-Walaja

2. UN Commission of Inquiry Issues 1st Report

3. Renewing [or not] Israeli Legalized Apartheid in the West Bank

4. More Settlements, Land Grab, Apartheid, Violence

5. Jerusalem

6. Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

7. Bonus Read

E-1 & Al-Walaja

Alert – Israeli Authorities Advance New Settlement Plan on Al-Walaja Lands (Ir Amim & Bimkom, 6/9/22) [“The Israel Civil Administration (ICA) has indicated its intent to deposit for public review the outline plan (TPS 401-4-1) for “Har Gilo West,” a new settlement south of Jerusalem on Al-Walaja lands (Area C), which will abut the built-up section of the village. Unless halted, the plan will be formally published for deposit in the public records within days, kicking off the 60-day period for submitting objections – a crucial step in advancing outline plans towards their approval.”] Also see: Israel to build new settlement near Bethlehem (Middle East Monitor 6/8/22)

An Urgent and Dire Warning about E-1 (Terrestrial Jerusalem 6/8/22) [“Overshadowed by events on the ground around the killing of Palestinian journalist, Shireen Abu Akleh and the Jerusalem Day Flag March, a major development occurred on Jerusalem Day itself which has potentially devastating ramifications. The Government of Israel announced that on July 18, the final hearing on the notorious settlement project of E-1, would be held by the Higher Jerusalem Planning Committee. If, as anticipated, the Plan is approved by the committee, we will be just two strokes of a pen away from the final statutory approval of E-1.]”

UN Commission of Inquiry Issues 1st Report

The Report: 

Text of report – including a lot of facts/analysis related to settlements, settler violence, etc.

New Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, issues first report (UN/OCHA 6/76/22)

Occupation, discrimination driving Israel-Palestine conflict, recurring violence (UN 6/7/22)

Media coverage:

UN-mandated rights inquiry rebukes Israel for seeking ‘complete control’ (Reuters 6/7/22)

UN probe blames Israel for perpetuating conflict with Palestinians (Times of Israel 6/7/22)

Responses:

MFA response to the report of the Human Rights Council’s Commission of Inquiry published today (Israeli Foreign Ministry 6/8/22) [“The Commission of Inquiry and the biased report it published are the result of the HRC’s extreme anti-Israel bias. The Commission members, who claim to be objective, were only appointed to their roles because of their public and well-known anti-Israel stances, in direct opposition to the rules set out by the United Nations.”]

US slams ‘one-sided’ UN probe blaming Israel for perpetuating the conflict (Times of Israel 6/8/22) [official press statement]

Statement on the Human Rights Council Commission of Inquiry on Gaza Report (UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office 6/8/22) [“The cause of advancing human rights in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories is not served by the disproportionate focus on Israel.”]

Renewing [or not] Israeli Legalized Apartheid in the West Bank

Before the vote:

‘Is there an alternative?’: MK Rozin says Meretz has no option on settlement bill (Times of Israel 6/4/22)

Israel’s government faces survival test with settlement bill (Al-Monitor 6/3/22)

In doomsday move, Knesset may affirm settlers don’t live in Israel – analysis [“To show that Bennett’s government is weak, politicians may reject the law that gives settlers in the West Bank the same legislative status as an Israeli resident.”] (Jerusalem Post 6/3/22)

Israel: Doubt over bill ‘constituting apartheid’ in West Bank throws government off (Middle East Eye 6/2/22)

Report: MK Silman to oppose bill renewing application of Israeli law to settlers (Times of Israel 6/2/22)

After the vote:

Want to dismantle Israeli apartheid? Start with this law (+972 Magazine 6/8/22)

What the failure of legal jurisdiction bill could mean for Israelis in Judea and Samaria [spoiler: not much] (Jewish News Syndicate 6/8/22)

Israel: Self-interest the winner in government’s settler bill defeat (Middle East Eye 6/8/22)

The Settler-Protection Law No Israeli Government Can Survive Without (Jewschool 6/8/22) [“It is crucial to emphasize that that the discrimination embodied in these regulations is based on ethnicity, not merely citizenship. Settlers entitled to the range of Israeli laws listed in the regulations include both Israeli citizens and people ‘entitled to immigrate to Israel under the Law of Return.’”]

Smotrich: Our first priority is to overthrow the government [“Religious Zionism leader Bezalel Smotrich explained his party’s vote last night against the Judea and Samaria Law: ‘Our first commitment to Israel and the Settlement enterprise is to overthrow the government. To my friends in the Settlement enterprise: The sky will not fall down just because of this law.’”] (Arutz Sheva 6/7/22)

Settler leader says Netanyahu and allies ‘spitting on West Bank settlers’ (YNet 6/8/22)

Sa’ar to try again to advance settler law bill, admits coalition may be on last legs (Times of Israel 6/7/22)

Israel’s Government Teeters Again, Losing Vote on Law that Supports West Bank Settlers (New York Times 6/7/22)

Lapid says MKs who can’t back coalition ‘should leave,’ after some torpedo key bill (Times of Israel 6/7/22)

Judea and Samaria law fails in the Knesset [“2 govt members, MKs Ganaim and Rinawie Zoabi, vote against bill applying Israeli law in Judea and Samaria. Silman absent from vote.“] (Arutz Sheva 6/6/22)

Israel: Failure of settlement bill would create ‘absolute chaos’ for West Bank settlers (i24 News 6/6/22)

Israeli coalition suffers loss, faces uncertain prospects (Associated Press 6/6/22)

More Settlements, Land Grab, Apartheid, Violence

Israel settlers rebuild illegal outpost in occupied West Bank (Middle East Monitor 6/9/22)

Regavim: Israel has failed to formulate policy on Judea and Samaria (Arutz Sheva 6/9/22)

Israeli settlers torch wheat crops in Nablus-district town (WAFA 6/9/22)

Settlers uproot and break about 190 olive seedlings near Turmusaya – vandalizing grove for second time this year (B’Tselem 6/8/22)

***Under Settler Pressure, Israel Extends Antiquities Authority’s Powers Into West Bank (Haaretz 6/7/22)***

Settlers threaten 10 new outposts during Biden visit amid Evyatar dispute (Israel Hayom 6/6/22)

Palestinians in a northern West Bank village prevented by Israeli soldiers from working on their lands (WAFA 6/7/22)

Israel seizes a large tract of Palestinian cultivated land northwest of Hebron (WAFA 6/6/22)

Hamas slams Israel’s decision to build 820 settlement units (Middle East Monitor 6/4/22)

Jerusalem

Israeli court rules in favor of settler takeover of high-profile Christian hotel in Jerusalem (WAFA 6/9/22) Also see: It’s Final: Ateret Cohanim’s Purchase of Jerusalem Old City Properties is Legal (Jewish Press 6/9/22); Israeli Supreme Court Supports the Radicals Against the Patriarchate of Jerusalem ( Patriarchate of Jerusalem 6/8/22)

EU Heads of Mission and likeminded countries visit Wadi Qaddoum in East Jerusalem (WAFA 6/7/22)

Ir Amim on Twitter 6/7/22: Thread – “In light of the impending demolition of a 4-story residential building in Wadi Qaddum, EJ – home to over 70 Palestinians – representatives of EUREP, EU Member States & likeminded countries along w @ochaopt  & @UNRWA met today w the families facing imminent displacement. Their building is subject to demolition under the pretext of lacking a bldg permit. Construction permits are nearly impossible for Palestinians to procure bc of discriminatory Israeli urban planning policies in EJ that are driven by political and demographic considerations. The families called upon the international community to compel Israel to fulfill its obligation to uphold their basic right to housing and shelter. #SaveSilwan”

Imminent Israeli demolition of a building in East Jerusalem may leave 74 Palestinians homeless – UN (WAFA 6/6/22)

Masafer Yatta Ethnic Cleansing

Basel al-Adra 6/9/22: Tweet – “In January, the occupation police raided one of the towns in my area and with a truck ran over and killed Suleiman Hathlin, an activist for freedom in Masafer Yatta. Today, settlers destroyed his tomb. The hatred and racism continues even after his death.” [with photos]

Life in the firing zone: the occupation of Masafer Yatta (The Guardian 6/8/22)

Basel al-Adra 6/7/22: Tweet – “Today a soldier entered Taban, a village in Masafer Yatta, and gave residents demolition orders for all they have: Their homes, water wells, roads – to be destroyed probably this week. A community erased. WE’RE BEING ETHNICALLY CLEANSED AND THE WORLD’S SILENT.  SaveMasaferYatta”

Israeli military forces Palestinian to demolish section of his home in Masafer Yatta area (WAFA 6/6/22)

Bonus Read

The Israel Defense Forces and Settlements Are One and the Same (Israel Harel/Haaretz 6/7/22) [“Because military doctrine, the outcome of Zionist ideology, determines that ‘the army and the settlements are one,’ any deviation from that is surrender to politicization.”]