Settlement & Annexation Report: October 20, 2023

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.

October 20, 2023

  1. Israel Advances Plan for New East Jerusalem Settlement Enclave, “Kidmat Tzion”
  2. Settler Terrorism & the Ongoing Displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank
  3. Bonus Reads

WATCH: On October 17th, FMEP hosted a webinar entitled “The Situation in Gaza: A Briefing” featuring Tania Hary (Gisha), Nour Odeh (political activist), Omar Shakir (Human Rights Watch) and Lara Friedman (FMEP).

Israel Advances Plan for New East Jerusalem Settlement Enclave, “Kidmat Tzion”

Peace Now reports that on October 9th the Jerusalem District Planning Committee met to review amendments to the “Kidmat Tzion” settlement plan, which calls for 384 settlement units to be built in the heart of the Palestinian East Jerusalem neighborhood Ras al-Amud. The plan was initially approved for public deposit on September 11, 2023 but the Committee had requested further input from the Israeli Ministry of Transportation and the Defense Ministry, given the particularly sensitive location of the enclave, which is designed to be heavily fortified and only accessible via road that goes through densely populated areas of Ras al-Amud. At the October 9th meeting, the Transportation Ministry proposed a plan to pave a new access road to the east; the Defense Ministry was unable to attend given the major attack and massacres by Palestinian militants from Hamas on Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip. The Committee again approved the settlement plan, but also scheduled another hearing to consider the details of the proposal for an alternate road.

Peace Now said in a statement: 

“Even in times of war and just two days after the largest security disaster in the history of the State of Israel since its establishment, the Israeli government does not forget to advance additional flashpoints and confrontations. It seems that the fact that the entire country is entangled in the southern, northern, and western frontlines and the tension in the West Bank does not prevent the Israeli government from promoting potential sources of future conflict. The East Jerusalem settlement is a clear statement of the government’s priorities. We have already seen who pays the price.״

As a reminder, the Kidmat Tzion settlement enclave will located on a tiny strip of land between the Ras al-Amud neighborhood and the Israeli separation barrier, with the Abu Dis neighborhood on the other side of the wall. Kidmat Tzion will be accessible only by driving through densely populated areas of Ras Al-Amud. To deal with the reality of its location, the architects of the plan have designed the enclave to be a heavily guarded and gated community. It will be surrounded by an electric fence, a patrol road, a concrete guard station at its entrance, and the roofs of the houses will have cameras and spotlights installed. The security plan for the enclave had to be prepared and filed by the IDF’s Central Command, which specified that four armed security guards will patrol the neighborhood at all times, as well as a security chief and an armored vehicle.

Haaretz notes that – despite its sensitivity – the plan has been flying through the planning process at a much faster speed than is typical, and was brazenly approved while U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf – a senior U.S. official – was in Israel in September. Sari Kronish of the Israeli NGO Bimkom told Haaretz: 

“The lightning speed with which the District Committee is promoting a plan to build a Jews-only, gated village in the heart of a Palestinian neighborhood in [East] Jerusalem raises the suspicion that this is a political ploy.”

Amy Cohen, Ir Amim’s Director of International Advocacy told Haaretz:

“Israel promotes tens of thousands of housing units for Jews in East Jerusalem every year, while systematically denying Palestinians the same housing rights, all with the aim of pushing them out of East Jerusalem and influencing the city’s demographic balance in a crude and artificial way,” said “This proposal severs the single access road leading to Palestinian homes and is being advanced with a speed we have never seen before. The move is doubly problematic since the City Engineer himself notes that necessary basic tests were not conducted.”

Originally introduced in April 2023, the plan is the product of the Ateret Cohanim settler group – rather, its affiliate the Bahorim Company – which filed documents with the planning committee that show it (Bahorim) only owns 10% of the land where Kidmat Tzion is planned for. The land is unregistered, but Bahorim submitted a table of ownership purporting to show that dozens of plots were owned by Jews prior to 1948, still other plots are owned by settler affiliated groups including one run by U.S. millionaire and settlement financier Irving Moskowitz, and 1 or 2 plots are owned by Palestinians. Part of the land is owned by the Israeli Custodian General.

Construction of this settlement could well achieve the considerable geopolitical consequences the settlers hope for — most notably by complicating if not outright blocking any future division of Jerusalem (or sharing agreement) under any possible Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. It is worth recalling that Abu Dis has been repeatedly suggested by Israel and its allies (including in the Trump Plan) as the capital of a future Palestinian state (as a substitute for Jerusalem), and an unfinished building in Abu Dis was designed to be the future home of a Palestinian parliament. This settlement plan would scuttle all such ideas. Indeed, in the planning documents Ateret Cohanim explained: 

“Palestinian institutions in Abu Dis were built with the vision of turning the town into the capital city of Palestine and building a corridor and passage to the center of Jerusalem, and thus promoting the takeover of the entire city…The significance of establishing and developing the neighborhood is to create a shield for Jerusalem against Palestinian ambitions. The neighborhood will disturb the contiguity [of the area] and protect us from dividing the city.”

The new settlement enclave will also further solidify the infrastructure connecting settlements south of Jerusalem to the city. Kidmat Zion will be located adjacent to the so-called “American Road,” which will tunnel underneath parts of Abu Dis. The “American Road” is a section of north-south highway that is meant to seamlessly connect settlements located in the north and south of Jerusalem to one another, and to serve as a bypass for settler traffic to cut through East Jerusalem’s Palestinian neighborhoods. While the road will be accessible to Palestinians (a fact touted by Israel as proof of Israeli good intentions), the obvious primary purpose is to entrench Israel settlements, expand Israeli control over all of East Jerusalem, and close off Palestinian East Jerusalem neighborhoods from the rest of the West Bank, thereby (further) torpedoing Palestinian hopes of one day establishing a capital in East Jerusalem. 

Settler Terrorism & the Ongoing Displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank

Settler terrorism – which was already at an astonishing high level of frequency and violence – is actively displacing more Palestinian communities across the West Bank. OCHA has recorded 100 settler attacks since October 7th, which on average is eight incidents per day, resulting in 79 deaths and 1,434 injuries. The violence and terror are resulting in the significant displacement of Palestinians from Area C of the West Bank. On October 17th, OCHA reported that “at least seven Palestinian communities in Area C of the West Bank have been fully or partially displaced amid settler attacks and threats. At least 43 Palestinian households comprising 283 people, including 146 children, were displaced from the herding Bedouin communities in the Ramallah, Hebron, Bethlehem, and Nablus governorates.”

In a particularly horrific incident on October 12th, three Palestinians were blindfolded, brutally assaulted, and urinated upon by a gang of 20-25 settlers and uniformed IDF soldiers. The victims are residents of the Wadi al-Seeq bedouin community, and while most of the village residents had fled their homes weeks before under the constant and escalating violence of settlers, the three victims returned to gather the remaining belongings when the attack occurred.

In an piece entitled, “Israel’s Expulsion of Palestinians in West Bank Amid the Fog of War” the Haaretz Editorial Board writes: 

“What is happening in the territories calls for military intervention and governmental attention. This time it isn’t “just” deepening the annexation and apartheid. Against the backdrop of the war in Gaza, the settlers’ crimes may push the Palestinians in the West Bank to violence, and bring about the opening of another front, which will make it difficult for the IDF to defend the country. The fact that the military and government allow these crimes to take place during wartime is itself a crime and a security failure. Unlike the failures that brought the current disaster upon Israel, this one can be stopped. The question is whether a government populated by settler representatives, who dream of Nakba 2.0 – or worse – is interested in, and capable of, enforcing limits upon these people.”

In a report on surging settler violence, Peace Now says:

“The IDF and the police must do everything possible to stop the escalating violence. During the past week, settler violence has intensified and reached new peaks. Meanwhile, Palestinians are experiencing a lack of security forces and protection from Israeli authorities. It seems that the first week of the war in Gaza is marked by security chaos. The bodies of law and order on the West Bank do not prevent violence and, at times, even align with settler demands. Revenge and harm to the innocent do not constitute a policy. If the legal authorities and the IDF do not take action, the West Bank will become a war zone. Like in any cycle of violence, the price will be paid by all residents, Israelis, and Palestinians.”

Notably, the surging violence and Israel’s war footing in the West Bank coincides with the start of the annual olive harvest season. HaMoked reports that Palestinian farmers are being systematically denied access to their land in the Seam Zone (i.e. on the Israeli side of the West Bank barrier inside of the West Bank), and Palestinians living the Seam Zone are being subjected to new restrictions on crossing the barrier into the West Bank. Palestinian farmers risk losing an entire year’s salary if denied the ability to tend to and harvest their crop.

Bonus Reads

  1. “Collective Punishment and Aggressive Policing in East Jerusalem Infringe on Palestinian Rights and Liable to Ignite Violence in the City” (Ir Amim, October 16, 2023)

Given the horrific events of the past week, there will not be a regular settlement report. Instead, we are sending out recommended resources for tracking events in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza. 

West Bank

East Jerusalem

Gaza

Live Blogs

News & Articles

  • Israel is arming settlers and making it easier to get a gun permit.
  • On October 13th, settlers shot a Palestinian at point-blank range in the South Hebron Hills, and then opened fire at the ambulance trying to transport the wounded man. The victim’s condition is unclear.
  • On October 12th, an Israeli police officer was shot and wounded by a Palestinian gunman near the Old City of Jerusalem. Subsequently, Israeli police have shut down the Old City of Jerusalem – preventing Palestinians under 70 years old from entering the city or reaching Al-Aqsa Mosque for Friday prayers. Police then tear gassed Palestinians who gathered outside of the city walls to pray and protest.
  • On October 11th, masked settlers attacked the Palestinian village in Qusra, killing four Palestinians. At the funeral, the IDF shot and killed one more.
  • On October 13th, four Palestinians were shot and killed by the Israeli police while allegedly attempting to take down part of the West Bank barrier near Tulkarem.
  • Amira Hass writes, “Israeli Settlers Aren’t Pausing the Expulsion and Dispossession in 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.

October 6, 2023

  1. Smotrich Sidelines Military Legal Advisor In Order to Pursue Agenda
  2. Smotrich & Settlers Demand Bypass Road Near Huwara Following Latest Violence
  3. Israel Tightens Grip on Sebastia Site
  4. Settlers, Knesset Continue Push for IDF to Seize “Archaeological Site” at Mt. Ebal/El-Burnat
  5. The Acceleration of “Herding Outposts”, And Their Impact
  6. OCHA Reports on Ongoing Ethnic Cleansing of Masafer Yatta
  7. The JNF Is Funding Hilltop Youth
  8. Bonus Reads

Smotrich Sidelines Military Legal Advisor In Order to Pursue Agenda

Haaretz reports that Bezalel Smotrich has taken further steps to consolidate his governance over settlements and outposts in the West Bank by sidelining the Defense Ministry’s top military legal advisor in favor of his own hand-picked deputy legal advisor, Moshe Frucht. Prior to joining Smotrich, Frucht was a researcher at the far-right Kohelet Policy Forum, an organization that is widely understood to be the architect behind the anti-democratic judicial revolution and author of many legal opinions arguing for the legality of Israeli settlements under international law.

In recent meetings on the topic of settlements, Smotrich has gone from overruling the objections of the military advisor to excluding them from meetings altogether. One Israeli MK, Gilad Kariv (Labor), also accuses Smotrich of hiding the army’s official legal position from the Knesset in committee hearings and when discussing government decisions. 

As a reminder, in February 2023 Smotrich was effectively made the ruling sovereign of Area C of the West Bank via his role as a minister in the Defense Ministry and as the head of the newly created Settlements Administration, which was given power over civilian affairs in Area C.

Smotrich & Settlers Demand Bypass Road Near Huwara Following Latest Violence

The Palestinian village of Huwara has been a focal point of violence over the past few days after a Palestinian gunman opened fire on a settler vehicle on October 5th, following repeated incidents of rock-throwing at Israeli vehicles near Huwara this week. Over the night of October 5th, hundreds of settlers – including MK Zvi Sukkot – descended upon Huwara in what they claim was an attempt to set up a Sukkah in celebration of the Sukkot holiday and in response to the attack. Settlers attacked Palestinian homes and businesses resulting in clashes with Palestinians. A 19-year old Palestinian boy, Labeeb Mohammed Dmaidi, was shot and killed while standing on the roof of his family home and allegedly throwing rocks towards the settlers and IDF soldiers. Palestinians believe a settler was the shooter.

The violence has resulted in the settlers demanding that the government complete the Huwara Bypass road, which has dragged on since construction began in 2021. Bezalel Smotrich publicly stated his support for the demand while in Huwara the day after the attacks, where he further called on Netanyahu to force Palestinian shops on Huwara’s main road to remain closed until the road is complete. Smotrich later criticized Netanyahu and Defense Minister Gallant for closing down Route 60 during the funeral procession for Dmaidi. Recall that earlier this year Smotrich said that Israel should “wipe out” Huwara.

The initial shooting attack occurred on Route 60, which is used by both settlers and Palestinians as the main thoroughfare connecting central and northern West Bank. Route 60 passes through Huwwara. The bypass road is designed so that residents of Nablus-area settlements can more easily/directly access Jerusalem without driving through Huwara. Israel unilaterally expropriated private Palestinian land along the route of the road in preparation for construction.

Beyond the new demand and the possible implications it will have on the freedom of movement for Palestinians to and from Huwara, National Security Minister Ben Gvir posted on X during the settlers October 5th attack on Huwara that “”Our [Jewish Israeli] lives take priority to the Palestinians’ freedom of movement (and commerce). We’ll continue to say this truth and actively work to implement [this truth].” This is the second time that Ben Gvir has said that the rights and freedoms of Jews are more important than Palestinians.

Israel Tightens Grip on Sebastia Site 

Emek Shaveh reports that on October 1st Israeli Minister for Environmental Protection, Idit Sliman, toured the archaeological site of Sebastia alongside settler leader Yossi Dagan, declaring that the land belongs to Israel. The Sebastia site is located near the Palestinian village of Sebastia, north of Nablus in the heart of the West Bank, and straddles the line designating Areas B and C, with most of the site is in Area C. The Palestinian village of Sebastia – which settlers travel through to reach the site – is in Area B entirely. During Sliman’s tour of the site the IDF sealed off all entry points to the village.

On May 7, 2023, the Israeli government approved nearly $9 million (NIS 32 million) for a project to develop and “renovate” the archaeological site of Sebastia. The project includes plans to pave a new access road for Israelis to reach the site, which they currently have to access by traveling through the Palestinian village of Sebastia.

Settlers have been openly agitating for Israel to assert control over the archaeological site in Sebastia for years, and the settler Samaria Regional Council organizes regular tours to the site. To secure the settlers’ visits, the IDF shuts down the town of Sebastia, closing Palestinian streets and businesses. As in other cases across the West Bank, settlers allege that Palestinians are damaging the Sebastia site and that the Israeli government needs to intervene. In 2021 amidst  intensifying settler efforts related to the site, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry called on UNESCO to “protect all Palestinian archaeological and religious sites from Israeli violations, attacks and falsifications.” The archaeological site of Sebastia is on the tentative list of World Heritage sites in Palestine.

Emek Shaveh further explains the history and politicization of this archaeological site

“The battle over Sebastia is also played out in the narratives each side presents to the public. The informational material distributed by the PA does not include an explicit reference to the Kingdom of Israel or to the Hasmonean connection. On the other hand, in recent years the settlers have been rehabilitating the figure of Omri, a King of the Kingdom of Israel, in an effort to imbue Sebastia with greater nationalist significance. Sebastia also holds a special place in recent history for the settlers because it is the place where the leaders of Gush Emunim, the group that first fought for the establishment of settlements in the West Bank in the 1970s, celebrated the government’s agreement to establish the first settlement in the area in 1975.  

In tandem with the growing campaign of recent years to apply full Israeli control over Sebastia, larger numbers of Israelis visit the site every week in buses organized by the Samaria Regional Council and accompanied by soldiers.

Sebastia, is a declared national park. National parks and nature reserves in Area C of the West Bank are managed by the Civil Administration and are referred to as “parks”. Their total area spans approximately 500,000 dunams and constitutes roughly 14.5% of Area C. Palestinians’ rights are violated in these territories through various means. In the Ein Prat Nature Reserve, for example, landowners cannot cultivate their land as their access is restricted. In Herodion National Park and Nabi Samuel, residents can neither construct nor renovate their homes.”

Settlers, Knesset Continue Push for IDF to Seize “Archaeological Site” at Mt. Ebal/El-Burnat

This week settlers have carried out daily trips to the archaeological site at Mt. Ebal, known as el-Burnat to Palestinians, located in Area B of the West Bank. On Monday, the Israeli army coordinated a trip for hundreds of Israelis to the site, but has not coordinated with settlers on their trip to the site in the subsequent days. Over the past two years, settlers have been clamoring for the army to take unilateral control over the site after the Palestinian Authority began to develop land nearby. 

On October 6th, MK Son-Harmelech participated in a trip to the site and subsequently called on the government of Israel to establish a new settlement at the site (which, again, is located in Area B). 

In a further show of the settlers influence and the government’s intentions with the site, Emek Shaveh reports that on September 25th a subcommittee of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense met to discuss accusations (which have proven to be false yet  are weaponized by settlers) that the Palestinian Authority has recklessly damaged and is attempting to destroy the site. Emek Shaveh explains: “The reports and the special subcommittee session are part of an orchestrated attempt by the settlers and their representatives in the Israeli parliament to use antiquity sites as a ruse for advancing annexation.” 

At the hearing, the Civil Administration’s Head of Infrastructure, Lieutenant Colonel Adam Avidan, acknowledged that the site is in Area B where the IDF has limited authority. He also said the IDF constructed an observation tower to monitor Palestinian activity at the site. Avidan also explained that the IDF had summoned the Palestinian village leader to warn him not to conduct any construction work at the site, showing a map that marked the borders (reminder that the IDF does not have any authority over antiquity sites in Areas A or B).

Mt.Ebal/el-Burnat is purported to be an antiquity site where the biblical prophet Joshua built an altar, originally identified as such in the 1980s by an Israeli archaeologist though the majority of professional archaeologists do not support that conclusion.  Emek Shaveh, an Israeli NGO with expertise in archaeology, called the settler campaign to seize Mt. Ebal as a “watershed in Israeli archaeology.” In July 2023, Emek Shaveh reported that a triad composed of settlers, an American Christian evangelical organization, and the Israeli army collaborated on a recent unlicensed excavation on Mount Ebal, which Emek Shaveh called antiquity theft. Further, the groups transferred some 80 cubic meters of soil from Mount Ebal to the Shavei Shomron settlement, where settlers then promoted an opportunity for members of the public to join the archaeologists in sifting through the materials (thereby promoting tourism to the settlements). Haaretz called the excavation “is mainly used as a tourist attraction to the West Bank and is of little scientific significance.”

Emek Shaveh’s explained the significance of what is happening on Mount Ebal: 

“The archaeological site at Mount Ebal is becoming a watershed in Israeli archaeology. The activity on the site has turned from a pirate operation led by a group of Messianic Jews and Christians into a state sponsored operation under the auspices of the Civil Administration led by Minister Bezalel Smotrich.This is yet another violation of the Oslo Accords and suspected violation of domestic and international law that is whitewashed by Israeli authorities and intended to serve as a method for advancing the annexation of the West Bank to Israel.In addition to the alleged violation of the law, the excavation constitutes an ethical failure by the entire archaeological community in Israel whose silence continues to grant legitimacy to such projects. A comprehensive and immediate investigation is required by all the relevant parties as well as independently by the Israeli Archaeological Association.”

The Acceleration of “Herding Outposts”, And Their Impact

On October 3rd The New York Times published an article describing the impact of so-called herding outposts on the battle for control over land in the West Bank, highlighting reporting from Kerem Navot that shows how settlers have been establishing herding and farming outposts as a way to coerce the displacement of Palestinians and assert control a maximal amount of land with a minimal number of Israeli settlers.

That 20 new herding outposts have been established so far this year, showing how this tactic has accelerated since 2018 when settlers began to strategically focus on herding outposts as an effective mechanism. Three Palestinian herding communities have been displaced from their lands this year, largely in fear of nearby settlers.

The Times reports:

“The Israeli settlers’ stated intention is to chip away at wide expanses of land that the Palestinian leadership, at the advent of the Oslo peace process 30 years ago, hoped would form the territorial spine of a future Palestinian state. ‘It’s not the nicest thing to evacuate a population,’ said Ariel Danino, 26, an Israeli settler who lives on an outpost and helps lead efforts to build new ones. ‘But we’re talking about a war over the land, and this is what is done during times of war’.”

In a 2022 report on this herding phenomenon, Kerem Navot explains:

“…the development of Israeli sheep and cattle grazing in the West Bank, […] 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. The use of grazing to seize land began in the early 1970s and continued intermittently in the 1980s and 90s. In recent years, however, the phenomenon mushroomed in terms of area size, investments, and the destructive repercussions for Palestinian communities.

The declared objective of the farm outposts is to “protect state lands”. In practice, however, they are designed to uproot Palestinian grazing and farming communities from public or private lands, and turn them into lands that only settlers can use. To promote this objective, one instrument must be used above all others: violence. Indeed, the farm outposts have recently seen some of the most violent incidents in the West Bank. It is no wonder that the uprooting of people from their lands, often also their ancestral lands, requires severe and ongoing violence. Accordingly, countless incidents involving threats, harassments, and assaults on Palestinian farmers and shepherds have occurred around these outposts in recent years, often in the presence and full support of military or police forces.

These outposts are the spearhead of a violent land-grabbing system, well planned and generously funded by various state and quasi-state bodies. These include the military, the Israeli Civil Administration (of the West Bank), regional and local councils, the World Zionist Organization’s Settlement Division, the Ministries of Agriculture and Education, and the new Ministries of Settlement and Intelligence. All are preoccupied with what has recently been referred to as the “Battle for Area C”, meaning the coercive transfer of Palestinians from the area, which represents 61% of the total area of the West Bank, and their enclosure in isolated enclaves.”

OCHA Reports on Ongoing Ethnic Cleansing of Masafer Yatta

In a new report, OCHA OpT reports that over the past three months, 13 Palestinian families (84 individuals, 44 of which are children) have been forcibly displaced from the homes and grazing lands in the Masafer Yatta region in the South Hebron Hills.

OCHA reports:

“Over the years, and increasingly since May 2022, the Israeli authorities have imposed movement restrictions, confiscated property, demolished homes, and carried out military trainings in Masafer Yatta. Jointly, these practices have contributed to a coercive environment that has pressured residents to move out. In the past three months, movement restrictions have further intensified. Operating from a newly established military base, Israeli forces now patrol the area more frequently, further restricting people’s movement and access to markets and basic services, as well as the shipment of fodder and other inputs for livestock, on which most families rely. They have additionally confiscated vehicles used by residents. Two schools in the area report that 24 students have dropped out this year, including pupils whose families have left amid this coercive environment, and others who fear the unsafe journey to school. In one incident, in September, Israeli forces stopped teachers who were travelling to work and threatened to seize their vehicle if they used it again.”

The JNF Is Funding Hilltop Youth

Haaretz reports that the Jewish National Fund has givn $1million over the past two years to organizations which are involved in the construction of illegal outposts, specifically to support a project aimed at the “Hilltop Youth.” The funding is meant to offer professional training for young high school drop outs living in illegal WEst Bank outposts.

In response the this revelation, the Haaretz Editorial Board writes:

“The Jewish National Fund is continuing to bolster its role as a key player in the settlement enterprise and its accompanying looting and dispossession of the Palestinians in the West Bank, in preparation for a future annexation. Like all other settlement players, JNF too seems to view all means as kosher. And if they aren’t kosher, then they’ll be koshered retroactively in the future, after the settlers finish their takeover of Israel. Over the last two years, the Jewish National Fund has invested 4 million shekels in a project to rehabilitate teen dropouts living on farms and herding outposts in the West Bank. The money, which was meant to fund professional training for teens, is passed on to organizations that encourage the establishment of illegal settlement outposts….. the occupied territories aren’t the periphery, and “agricultural farms” in the West Bank lie outside Israel’s borders. And judging by its response, JNF is indifferent to their illegality. “The JNF is active in educational programs and does not deal with the legal status of these farms,” it said. In practice, it is directing at-risk youth to join the settlers’ extremist “hilltop youth.” Like all of Israel’s other national institutions, JNF completed its national mission once the state was established and should have been closed at that time. This is doubly true now that it has become the Settlement and Annexation National Fund.”

Bonus Reads

  1. “How to establish a new settlement without the world noticing” (+972 Magazine)
  2. “Settler violence is fueling the effects of climate breakdown on Palestinians” (+972 Magazine)
  3. “West Bank Dispatch: Settlers escalate harassment campaign, while army targets more resistance groups” (Mondoweiss)
  4. “Biden and Europe Beware: Your Silence on Israel’s Annexation Strengthens Putin” (Haaretz)
  5. “PA police extract 5 tourists mobbed after illegally entering Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus” (The Times of Israel)
  6. “How Israel uses settler violence to displace Palestinians” (The New Arab)
  7. “Why I spent Yom Kippur protecting Palestinian villagers from settler violence” (JTA News)
  8. ”Analysis | Israeli Far Right’s Ambitious West Bank Plan Could Be Saudi Deal’s Achilles’ Heel” (Amos Harel in 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.

September 22, 2023

  1. Attention World Leaders: Israel is Violating International Law
  2. State-Backed Settler Terrorism Is Working
  3. Bonus Reads

Attention World Leaders: Israel is Violating International Law

With all eyes on the United Nations General Assembly meetings taking place in New York City this week – on the sidelines of which Prime Minister Netanyahu met with President Biden – several organizations have published incisive briefing documents in hopes of reminding world leaders of exactly how much Israel respects international law.

Peace Now published a briefing note – “Annexation as a Process in the Making: The First Nine Months of the Netanyahu-Smotrich-Ben Gvir Government” – chronologically detailing thirteen of the most significant acts of annexation and settlement expansion undertaken by the Israeli government in 2023. The briefing “outline[s] the key political decisions and actions taken by Israel during these nine months, highlighting how settlement expansion and the annexation became the central policy of the current Netanyahu-Smotrich-Ben Gvir government.”

Ir Amim published an overview of East Jerusalem settlement advancements thus far in 2023, documenting a total of 18,223 new settlement units being pushed through the planning process. See the full briefing for the history and context of each settlement, along with data tables and maps.

Ir Amim writes: 

“These developments only continue to cement a one-state reality of permanent occupation and systematic oppression whereby one group is afforded full civil and human rights, while the other is deprived of those rights.

In Jerusalem, one of the most severe expressions of this reality is the deprivation of Palestinian housing rights exemplified by discriminatory urban planning policy which aims to engineer Jewish demographic dominance and push large portions of the Palestinian population out of the city. In contrast to the thousands of housing units advanced annually for Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem, residential development in Palestinian areas is systematically neglected, which undermines Palestinian rights to housing and serves as a lever of displacement.  

In the absence of equitable urban planning and housing solutions, Palestinians are either forced out of Jerusalem or compelled to construct homes without building permits, which subjects them to the threat of demolition. Between January 1-September 21, 2023, there have been 150 demolitions across East Jerusalem, 87 of which were homes. This marks a significant rise from 2022 for the same period.”

State-Backed Settler Terrorism Is Working

A new United Nations report is calling more attention to the large and growing scale of Palestinian displacement caused by settler violence. The report states that 1,105 Palestinians have been forced to leave their homes and land since 2022, all under coercive duress caused by unmitigated settler violence. The report documents:

  • 1,105 people from 28 Communities…have been displaced from their places of residence since 2022, citing settler violence and the prevention of access to grazing land by settlers as the primary reason
  • 93% of the Communities reported a higher frequency of settler violence and 90% reported that the severity of the settler violence had increased since the beginning of 2022….
  • In 81% of the Communities, residents had filed complaints with the Israeli Police in some or most of the settler violence incidents that they faced. However, only 6% of these community representatives were aware of any follow up actions being taken by the Israeli authorities.”

B’Tselem published a new paper – “The Pogroms Are Working: The Transfer is Already Happening” – documenting what this forced displacement looked like for six bedouin communities this year, explaining how Israeli policies and measures make life so untenable for these communities that they are forced to leave. B’Tselem writes:

“Israel works to make the lives of residents in communities located in areas it covets miserable to the point that they can no longer take it and uproot themselves, leaving their homes and land for the state to take. This policy is implemented using two parallel tracks. In one track – given a stamp of approval by military orders, legal advisers and the Supreme Court – the state evicts Palestinians from their land. In the other parallel track, settlers use violence against Palestinians, aided and abetted by state forces, and sometimes, with their participation. This policy has led to the forcible transfer of at least six communities, but many other communities throughout the West Bank experience the same brutality and are under an immediate threat of expulsion. 

This is an illegal policy that implicates Israel in the war crime of forcible transfer. International law, which Israel is obligated to respect and has undertaken to abide by, forbids the forcible transfer of residents of an occupied territory – no matter the circumstances. The fact that this particular case does not involve soldiers arriving at residents’ homes and physically forcing them out is irrelevant. Creating a coercive environment that leaves residents no other choice is sufficient to find Israel liable for this crime. 

These communities are not displaced because of some natural disaster or other unavoidable circumstances. It is a choice the apartheid regime is making in order to realize its goal of maintaining Jewish supremacy in the entire area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. This regime views land as a resource designed to serve the Jewish public only, and so land is, therefore, used almost exclusively for the development and expansion of existing Jewish settlements and the establishment of new ones. 

As such, resisting the ongoing transfer is a duty, and there is, obviously, no obligation to continue cooperating with the implementation of the policies that drive it. Growing segments of the Israeli public have recently declared their refusal to serve in the army in an undemocratic country. There is nothing more worthy of refusing than participating in the commission of a war crime and the implementation of a transfer policy.”

Bonus Reads

    1. “Palestinians’ new method of encroaching on Israeli territory: B&Bs” (Israel Hayom) [Alt Headline: “Settlers Furious Palestinians Are Developing Land They Want to Steal”]
    2. “Far-right Israeli Lawmaker Calls Settler Convicted of Murdering Palestinian Family ‘Holy Righteous Man’” (Haaretz)
    3. “Campaign for Settler Convicted of Murdering Palestinian Family Raises Over NIS 1 Million” (Haaretz)
    4. “Israeli Far-right Activists Disrupt EU Delegation’s Visit to West Bank” (Haaretz)
    5. “Palestinians Demand Israel-Saudi Deal Include Settlement Freeze, Increased Autonomy” (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.

September 15, 2023

    1. New from FMEP
    2. Israel Advances Plan for New, Heavily Fortified Settlement Enclave in East Jerusalem – “Kidmat Tzion”
    3. Israel Advances Plan to Massively Expand of Givat Hamatos Settlement (New Talpiyot Hill/Hebron Strip Plan)
    4. Settlers Forcibly Seize East Jerusalem Home, Later Removed
    5. Oslo & The Settlements
    6. Bonus Reads

New from FMEP

  • This week FMEP launched a new microsite dedicated to tracking Palestine-related lawfare. Lawfare refers to efforts that seek to exploit U.S. laws and courts in order to quash criticism and activism challenging Israeli policies, to delegitimize Palestinian organizations and the Palestinian cause, and to undermine and even criminalize support for and/or solidarity with the Palestinian people. This includes legislation and policies targeting Americans’ rights to boycott Israel and/or settlements. Notably: these efforts almost universally mandate, explicitly or implicitly, that Israeli settlements in the OPT be treated as part of Israel. You can visit the new site here: lawfare.fmep.org
  • This week FMEP hosted a webinar entitled, “Forcible Transfer is a War Crime: West Bank Pogroms are Working” featuring B’Tselem’s Sarit Michaeli and Kareem Jubran in conversation with FMEP’s Sarah Anne Minkin. The discussion highlights the role settler terrorism is playing in forcibly displacing entire Palestinian communities from Area C. You can watch or listen to the discussion here.

Israel Approves New, Heavily Fortified Settlement Enclave in East Jerusalem – “Kidmat Tzion”

On September 11th, the Jerusalem Local Planning & Building Committee met, and subsequently approved for deposit, plans to build a massive new settlement enclave inside of the Ras al-Amud neighborhood of East Jerusalem. The new enclave – called “Kidmat Tzion” – was approved for the construction of 384  settlement units, to be located on a tiny strip of land between the Ras al-Amud neighborhood and the Israeli separation barrier, with the Abu Dis neighborhood on the other side of the wall.

The settlement enclave will be accessible only by driving through densely populated areas of Ras Al-Amud. To deal with the reality of its location, the architects of the plan have designed the enclave to be a heavily guarded and gated community. It will be surrounded by an electric fence, a patrol road, a concrete guard station at its entrance, and the roofs of the houses will have cameras and spotlights installed. The security plan for the enclave had to be prepared and filed by the IDF’s Central Command, which specified that four armed security guards will patrol the neighborhood at all times, as well as a security chief and an armored vehicle.

Haaretz notes that – despite its sensitivity – the plan has been flying through the planning process at a much faster speed than is typical, and was brazenly approved this week while U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf – a senior U.S. official – was in Israel. Sari Kronish of the Israeli NGO Bimkom told Haaretz: 

“The lightning speed with which the District Committee is promoting a plan to build a Jews-only, gated village in the heart of a Palestinian neighborhood in [East] Jerusalem raises the suspicion that this is a political ploy.”

Amy Cohen, Ir Amim’s Director of International Advocacy told Haaretz:

“Israel promotes tens of thousands of housing units for Jews in East Jerusalem every year, while systematically denying Palestinians the same housing rights, all with the aim of pushing them out of East Jerusalem and influencing the city’s demographic balance in a crude and artificial way,” said “This proposal severs the single access road leading to Palestinian homes and is being advanced with a speed we have never seen before. The move is doubly problematic since the City Engineer himself notes that necessary basic tests were not conducted.”

Originally introduced in April 2023, the plan is the product of the Ateret Cohanim settler group – rather, its affiliate the Bahorim Company – which filed documents with the planning committee that show it (Bahorim) only owns 10% of the land where Kidmat Tzion is planned for. The land is unregistered, but Bahorim submitted a table of ownership purporting to show that dozens of plots were owned by Jews prior to 1948, still other plots are owned by settler affiliated groups including one run by U.S. millionaire and settlement financier Irving Moskowitz, and 1 or 2 plots are owned by Palestinians. Part of the land is owned by the Israeli Custodian General.

Construction of this settlement could well achieve the considerable geopolitical consequences the settlers hope for — most notably by complicating if not outright blocking any future division of Jerusalem (or sharing agreement) under any possible Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement. It is worth recalling that Abu Dis has been repeatedly suggested by Israel and its allies (including in the Trump Plan) as the capital of a future Palestinian state (as a substitute for Jerusalem), and an unfinished building in Abu Dis was designed to be the future home of a Palestinian parliament. This settlement plan would scuttle all such ideas. Indeed, in the planning documents Ateret Cohanim explained:

“Palestinian institutions in Abu Dis were built with the vision of turning the town into the capital city of Palestine and building a corridor and passage to the center of Jerusalem, and thus promoting the takeover of the entire city…The significance of establishing and developing the neighborhood is to create a shield for Jerusalem against Palestinian ambitions. The neighborhood will disturb the contiguity [of the area] and protect us from dividing the city.”

The new settlement enclave will also further solidify the infrastructure connecting settlements south of Jerusalem to the city. Kidmat Zion will be located adjacent to the so-called “American Road,” which will tunnel underneath parts of Abu Dis. The “American Road” is a section of north-south highway that is meant to seamlessly connect settlements located in the north and south of Jerusalem to one another, and to serve as a bypass for settler traffic to cut through East Jerusalem’s Palestinian neighborhoods. While the road will be accessible to Palestinians (a fact touted by Israel as proof of Israeli good intentions), the obvious primary purpose is to entrench Israel settlements, expand Israeli control over all of East Jerusalem, and close off Palestinian East Jerusalem neighborhoods from the rest of the West Bank, thereby (further) torpedoing Palestinian hopes of one day establishing a capital in East Jerusalem. 

Israel Approves Expansion of Givat Hamatos Settlement (New Talpiyot Hill/Hebron Strip Plan)

On September 11th, the Jerusalem District Planning Committee also approved for deposit a plan that will expand the Givat Hamatos settlement. The plan – referred to as “New Talpiot Hill” and/or Hebron Strip – stands to double the number of housing units in the Givat Hamatos settlement and increase its land mass by 40%, introducing not only 3,500 new settlement units but 1,300 hotel rooms in highrise buildings, posing a direct competition to the Palestinian tourism industry in nearby Bethlehem.

Further, the new settlement will be built on a strategic strip of land that will expand the area of Givat Hamatos eastward, connecting it with another new settlement plan – the “Lower Aqueduct Plan.” These plans ultimately create a string of settlements — spanning from Gilo to Givat Hamatos to Har Homa — that, together with the planned “Givat HaShaked” settlement to its north, completely encircle the East Jerusalem Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Safafa with Israeli settlement construction. 

Peace Now reports that the project is a joint initiative of the Greek Orthodox Church and a private company. The Church has said that part of the development is intended for use by the city’s Christian community, though previous reports indicate that the plan calls for five synagogues and two mikvehs, clearly showing that the construction is designed to serve Israeli Jews.

Ir Amim writes:

“Together, Givat Hamatos A and New Talpiyot Hill along with concurrent settlement advancements in the area are cumulatively sealing off East Jerusalem’s southern perimeter from Bethlehem and the southern West Bank. These measures likewise further fracture the Palestinian space and deplete all remaining land reserves in the area for Palestinian development. Such conditions severely undermine the prospects of an agreed political future of Jerusalem, while depriving Palestinians of their fundamental right to housing and shelter.”

Settlers Forcibly Seize East Jerusalem Home, Later Removed

On September 12th, a group of settlers forcibly seized a Palestinian home belonging to the Idris family in the Old City of Jerusalem. At the time, the matriarch of the family was in the hospital. The family arrived back home to find their house taken over by settlers. They were told to file a complaint in order to prove their ownership of the house.

The settlers were guarded by the Israeli security forces while they removed the families furniture, changed the doors and locks on the home and installed metal bars on the windows and roof. PCHR also reports the settlers built a “steel staircase and a mobile room to be later attached to the house.”

The settlers were later removed from the house by the Israeli police.

Oslo & The Settlements

Peace Now has published a host of information looking at how the settlement enterprise has thrived since the signing of the Oslo Accords thirty years ago. Key facts are:

1993 2023
110,000 settlers living in the West Bank 465,000 settlers living in the West Bank
128 settlements in the West Bank 300 settlements and outposts in the West Bank
140,000 settlers living in East Jerusalem settlements 230,000 settlers living in East Jerusalem settlements
800 settlers living in enclaves inside of Palestinians East Jerusalem neighborhoods 3,000 settlers living in enclaves inside of Palestinians East Jerusalem neighborhoods

Peace Now concludes:

“The thirty years following the Oslo Accords were characterized by a significant expansion of the settler population in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, growing from approximately 250,000 in 1993 to nearly 700,000 by 2023. This population growth is a result of Israel’s ongoing expansion of settlements, the establishment of new settlements in the form of outposts, and the construction of hundreds of kilometers of bypass roads, making it easier for settlements to connect to Israel. Additionally, a significant reinforcement of the settler population comes from the Haredim (ultra-Orthodox), who have no ideological connection to the settlements and had not settled in the West Bank before the Oslo Accords, except for a few neighborhoods in East Jerusalem (Neve Yaakov, Ramat Shlomo, and Ramot).

The conclusions drawn from the data are clear. The settlement enterprise did not suffer from the Oslo Accords but rather thrived. Israel continued to expand, develop, and authorize settlements in the West Bank unabated. Even in years when few new settlements were established (1993–1997), infrastructure work continued. When factoring in agricultural land and pastures seized by settlers, it can be concluded that the settlement enterprise has never been in a better position, while the situation for Palestinians in the West Bank remains difficult and fraught with challenges.”

Bonus Reads

  1. “The Palestinian Boy Whose Village Was Destroyed Turned Into a True Freedom Fighter” (Haaretz)
  2. “Settlers Assault Palestinian and Left-wing Israeli Activists in Separate West Bank Attacks” (Haaretz)
  3. “Israel to close West Bank, Gaza Strip crossings over Rosh Hashanah” (i24 News)
  4. “Israel’s finance minister now governs the West Bank. Critics see steps toward permanent control” (AP)

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

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

September 8, 2023

  1. Israel Establishes Official Borders for Three Outposts
  2. IDF Demolishes Illegal Settler Structures Near Yitzhar
  3. Settler Leader Pushes Campaign to Seize Mt. Ebal, Located in Area B
  4. New Civil Admin Head Nominated, Without Input or Approval of Smotrich
  5. Real Estate Developer Files Suit Against Settlers, IDF
  6. Blistering New UN Report Calls Israeli Occupation Illegal & Calls for Reparations
  7. Settler Terrorism as a Means of State-Sanctioned Ethnic Cleansing
  8. Bonus Reads

Israel Establishes Official Borders for Three Outposts

On September 6th, the head of the IDF signed a military order establishing municipal borders for three outposts – Avigail, Asa’el, and Beit Hogla – a significant step towards the retroactive legalization of the outposts, which was directed by the Israeli government in February 2023 (along with five others). The Avigail and Asael outposts are located in the South Hebron Hills; the Beit Hogla outpost is south east of Jericho.

The next step in the legalization of the outposts is creating a masterplan to designate the area for residential construction, so that the existing buildings can be granted retroactive legalization and future building can commence planning. 

Bezalel Smotrich (who is effectively governor of the West Bank in his capacity as a minister within the Defense Ministry) celebrated this step towards legalization of the outposts, saying:

“Great things are happening in the settlements, and the nationalist government is advancing right-wing, Zionist and nationalist policies that see the development of the settlements in Judea and Samaria as an asset to the State of Israel,”

Peace Now said in a statement:

“The annexation has for a long time stopped creeping. The Israeli government led by Netanyahu and Smotrich has officially decided to promote with all its vigor the annexation of the West Bank. The decision of the commander of the IDF Central Command regarding the municipal boundaries is yet another step in this process. Not only is the State of Israel promoting more settlements, which do great damage to Israelis and Palestinians, it is also giving each settlement a huge and disproportionate area for its boundary jurisdiction…The main goal of the regime and the messianic [judicial] coup is to enable such processes, and to import the reality of apartheid in the [West Bank] territories into the territory of the State of Israel,” it added. “Anyone who opposes the regime coup must oppose this process that will lead us to the end of the State of Israel as a democratic and Jewish state.”

Reported last week, the Israeli non-profit Kerem Navot says that the proposed new boundary of the Asa’el settlement is eighteen times larger than the outpost, which currently has 71 (illegal, even under Israeli law) buildings. The boundary of the Avigail settlement is nearly three times the size of the outpost. 

The Avigail outpost, currently composed of 48 buildings,  is located in Firing Zone 918 in the South Hebron Hills. This is the same firing zone that is home to the Palestinian communities of Masafer Yatta — whose existence pre-dates Israel’s declaration of the area as a firing zone. Those communities are today in the process of being ethnically cleansed by Israel. Both Avigail and Asael have, illegally, built access roads on privately owned Palestinian land. Legalization of the Avigail outposts will undoubtedly also include the theft of the Palestinian-owned land these roads were illegally built on.

The Beit Hogla outpost is located in the Jordan Valley near the Dead Sea, and has 22 buildings currently.

IDF Demolishes Illegal Settler Structures Near Yitzhar

On September 4th, an estimated 150 Israeli soldiers and police arrived on land near the radical Yitzhar settlement to forcibly remove settlers and demolish three illegal structures. One of the structures, described as a lookout point, was located in Area B, while two others were built on land that the Oslo Accords designated as Area C. The Times of Israel reports this is only the third time the current government has carried out a demolition order against illegal settler construction.

Settlers expressed fury following the demolition of the structures, which settlers say were constructed in the memory of Rina Schnerb – an Israeli settler who was killed by a bomb placed by a Palestinian at a West Bank spring. The fury, almost entirely, was directed at Bezalel Smotrich who is single handedly responsible for overseeing demolition actions in Area C of the West Bank.

Settler Leader Pushes Campaign to Seize Mt. Ebal, Located in Area B

Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria settlement council and a prominent leader, went on Israeli TV to push the government to unilaterally annex the area of Mt. Ebal in the northern west bank, known as el-Burnat by Palestinians. Mt. Ebal/el-Burnat is located in Area B of the West Bank, some 22% of the West Bank that the Oslo Accords does not afford Israel control over civilian matters like archaeology. Dagan alleges that the Palestinian Authority is “systematically trying to destroy the heritage sites of the Jewish people.” As FMEP has chronicled, settlers and their allies are intent upon using claims of Palestinian damage/neglect as a pretext for Israel taking control of archaeological sites and artifacts across the West Bank.

Dagan pushed for action, saying:

“I am very upset because we will not be able to chase the mosquitoes. We need to dry up the swamp. The Israeli government must regain full control over Joshua’s Altar on Mount Ebal. It must fence it and place a guard there. Netanyahu said two years ago that we would place a guard there and I expect that the promise will be kept and a guard will be posted. No nation would accept a situation where its most important heritage sites are abandoned to systematic destruction and looting.”

Mt.Ebal/el-Burnat is purported to be an antiquity site where the biblical prophet Joshua built an altar, originally identified as such in the 1980s by an Israeli archaeologist though the majority of professional archaeologists do not support that conclusion.  Emek Shaveh, an Israeli NGO with expertise in archaeology, called the settler campaign to seize Mt. Ebal as a “watershed in Israeli archaeology.” In July 2023, Emek Shaveh reported that a triad composed of settlers, an American Christian evangelical organization, and the Israeli army collaborated on a recent unlicensed excavation on Mount Ebal, which Emek Shaveh called antiquity theft. Further, the groups transferred some 80 cubic meters of soil from Mount Ebal to the Shavei Shomron settlement, where settlers then promoted an opportunity for members of the public to join the archaeologists in sifting through the materials (thereby promoting tourism to the settlements). Haaretz called the excavation “is mainly used as a tourist attraction to the West Bank and is of little scientific significance.”

Emek Shaveh’s explained the significance of what is happening on Mount Ebal: 

“The archaeological site at Mount Ebal is becoming a watershed in Israeli archaeology. The activity on the site has turned from a pirate operation led by a group of Messianic Jews and Christians into a state sponsored operation under the auspices of the Civil Administration led by Minister Bezalel Smotrich.This is yet another violation of the Oslo Accords and suspected violation of domestic and international law that is whitewashed by Israeli authorities and intended to serve as a method for advancing the annexation of the West Bank to Israel.In addition to the alleged violation of the law, the excavation constitutes an ethical failure by the entire archaeological community in Israel whose silence continues to grant legitimacy to such projects. A comprehensive and immediate investigation is required by all the relevant parties as well as independently by the Israeli Archaeological Association.”

As a reminder, on July 17th the Israeli government approved a three-year $33 million (NIS 120 million) plan to take control over archaeological sites throughout the West Bank, including plans to establish 4-7 new settlement tourist sites. The $33million budget came in addition to $9 million dollars in funding that the government approved in May 2023 to develop and “renovate” the archaeological site of Sebastia, located near the Palestinian village of Sebastia, north of Nablus in the heart of the West Bank. The project includes plans to pave a new access road for Israelis to reach the site, which they currently have to access by traveling through the Palestinian village of Sebastia, which will increase and entrench Israeli control not only over the site itself but the surrounding area – effectively weaponizing archaeology as a tool for dispossession.

In January 2021, the Israeli government committed funding to a new settler initiative to surveil archeological sites under Palestinian control. While the objective of protecting antiquities might appear uncontroversial and apolitical, the true (and transparently self-evident) objectives behind this effort are: to support yet another pretext to surveil and police Palestinians; to establish and exploit yet another means to dispossess Palestinians of their properties; to expand/deepen Israeli control across the West Bank; and to further entrench Israeli technical, bureaucratic and legal paradigms that treat the West Bank as sovereign Israeli territory. It is the result of a campaign that has taken place over the past year in which settlers have escalated their calls for the Israeli government to seize antiquities and “heritage sites” located in Palestinian communities across the West Bank, especially in Area C, which Israel today treats as functionally (and legally) indistinguishable from sovereign Israeli territory. Funding committed by Israel for West Bank “heritage sites” should be understood in this context

Previous victories for the settlers in this same arena include the Israeli Civil Administration’s issuance in 2020 of expropriation orders – the first of their kind in 35 years – for two archaeological sites located on privately owned Palestinian property northwest of Ramallah. The settlers’ pressure is also credited as the impetus behind the government’s clandestine raid of a Palestinian village in July 2020 to seize an ancient font. 

In June 2020, the “Guardians of Eternity” group began surveying areas in the West Bank that Israel has designated as archaeological sites, looking for Palestinian construction (barred by Israel in such areas) that they could then use as a pretext to demand that Israeli authorities demolish it. The group communicates its findings to the Archaeology Unit of the Israeli Civil Administration (reminder: the Civil Administration is the arm of the Israeli Defense Ministry which since 1967 has functioned as the de facto sovereign over the West Bank). The Archaeology Unit, playing its part, then delivers eviction and demolition orders against Palestinians, claiming that the structures damage antiquities in the area.

And one more reminder: in 2017, Israel designated 1,000 new archaeological sites in Area C of the West Bank. The “Guardians of Eternity” group, not coincidentally, is an offshoot of the radical Regavim organization, which among other things works to push Israeli authorities to demolish Palestinian construction (on Palestinians’ own land) that lacks Israeli permits (permits that Israel virtually never grants).

New Civil Admin Head Nominated, Without Input or Approval of Smotrich

On September 3rd,, the IDF Chief of Staff appointed Brig. Gen. Hisham Ibrahim as head of the Civil Administration, the body within the Israeli Defense Ministry which acts as administrator of the occupation. The appointment was made without the approval of Bezalel Smotrich, who wields virtually unchecked power over civilian matters in Area C of the West Bank as a minister within the Defense Ministry and head of the “Settlements Administration” and as entitled to appoint the Deputy Chief of the Civil Administration.

Israel Hayom further reports that Smotrich recommended his own candidate for the post, but was rebuffed by Defense Minister Gallant and the head of the IDF.

Real Estate Developer Files Suit Against Settlers, IDF

Haaretz reports that the Union Construction and Investment company has filed a $5.2million lawsuit with the Tel Aviv District Court against six settlers, the IDF, and Israeli police – a lawsuit which documents 74 raids by Israeli settlers into the land and construction site the company is developing in the Palestinian village of Turmus Ayya in the northern West Bank. The company is owned by Palestinian-Canadian Khaled Al-Sabawi, who purchased land in Turmus Ayya in 2019, planning to build a housing project on the land.

The lawsuit alleges that settlers damaged the construction site in 26 separate incidents, which include damaging construction equipment and physical attacks on the company’s employees and clients. The settlers also have been repeatedly video-taped intimidating Palestinian workers and clients who go to the site, telling them “This isn’t your land,” “You can’t be here,” “If you love your children, don’t bring them here.” The Israeli police and IDF are accused in the lawsuit of failing to stop the settlers’ violence.

One of the six defendants is Elisha Yered, a well-known, radical, and violent settler who has been repeatedly in the news cycle, most recently for his involvement in the murder of Qosai Jammal Mi’tan in Burqa. Yered lives in the outpost of Ramat Migron in the northern West Bank, and is under ongoing investigation following his arrest in August 2022 for “racist conspiracy” — amongst other charges for crimes against Palestinians. Yered also serves as the spokesman for Otzma Yehudit lawmaker Limor Son Har-Melech.

Al-Sabawi – represented by prominent human rights lawyer Michael Sfard and Hussein Abu Hussein – told Haaretz that he is suing for $5.2 million in damages the company incurred due to the settlers attacks, saying that because of the settlers he cannot sell the properties and some of his clients have even asked for refunds. 

The six settlers listed in the lawsuit have filed a response, claiming that their actions are legal forms of protest, that the statute of limitations has expired, and that the development is located in Area B where the Israeli court does not have jurisdiction.

Blistering New UN Report Calls Israeli Occupation Illegal & Calls for Reparations

On August 30th, the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) released an exhaustive 106-page report on the conduct of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories, concluding that the occupation is illegal and that “reparations should be accorded to… Palestinian individuals, corporations & entities, for the generational harm caused by Israel’s land & property appropriations, house demolitions, pillage… denial of return & other war crimes & crimes against humanity.” The report calls for the immediate, unconditional and total withdrawal of Israel’s military forces; the withdrawal of colonial settlers; and the dismantling of the military administrative regime” and more.

Former UN Special Rapporteur on PalestineMichael Lynk called the report:

“the most comprehensive, the most detailed, the most thorough documentation addressing the questions that the UN General Assembly has put before the International Court of Justice regarding its advisory opinion on the legality of Israel’s now over 56-year occupation of Palestine.” 

Settler Terrorism as a Means of State-Sanctioned Ethnic Cleansing

There have been several must-read articles detailing how settler violence towards Palestinian herding communities amounts to ethnic cleansing. FMEP recommends reading:

  1. “The End of Widady” (Jewish Currents)
  2. “Settlers Have a Very Effective System for Forcing Palestinians Out of Their Homes” (Avishay Mohar for Haaretz)
  3. “Israeli Settlers Target the Weakest Link as Ethnic Cleansing Becomes Policy” (Gideon Levy for Haaretz)

Bonus Reads

  1. “Important Update on the 6 Homes at Risk of Imminent Demolition in Al-Walaja (East Jerusalem)” (Ir Amim)
  2. “’There Is an Apartheid State Here’: Ex-Mossad Chief on Israel’s West Bank Occupation” (Haaretz)
  3. “Far-right activists in Ma’ale Adumim try to curb Palestinian presence in settlement” (The Times of Israel)
  4. “The Druze ‘Hilltop Youth’: Young men building illegal outposts on Mount Carmel” (Arutz Sheva)

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

To subscribe to this report, please click here.

September 1, 2023

  1. Israel Allocates Lands to WZO in order to Expand Two Settlements
  2. Government Delays Smotrich’s New $185 Million Plan to Expand Settlements
  3. During Time as Tourism Minister, Yariv Levin Poured Money into Settlement Projects
  4. Bonus Reads

Israel Allocates Lands to WZO in order to Expand Two Settlements

Peace Now reports that on August 27, 2023, the Israeli government directed the allocation of state lands near two settlements (Mevo’ot Yericho and Amichai) to the Settlement Division of the World Zionist Organization, which will, in turn, allocate the lands to the settlements for expansion. In addition to the concerning expansion of the two settlements, the might signal the government’s intention to formalize the authority of the Settlement Division – a private, non-state entity –  to manage the legal process of allocating state lands to settlements and outposts across the West Bank to settlements.

As a reminder, the Settlement Division is a body within the WZO established in 1971 and fully funded by the Israeli government. It serves as a channel by which the government can establish settlements – legally and illegally – in the occupied territories, while avoiding the rules, regulations, and transparency requirements to which government entities are bound. The Israeli government assigned management responsibilities to the WZO for over 60% of the land in the West Bank which the government declared to be “state land” (90,000 acres/400,000 dunams). The WZO has then given that land to settlers to build settlements and secretly funnel government money to illegal outposts. However, Peace Now reports that in recent years the government has “refrained from granting new lands to the Settlement Division, opting for limited and specific allocations instead. The recent decision signifies a noteworthy shift, indicating the government’s intent to formalize the process of land management in the territories by officially outsourcing it to the Settlement Division.”

Peace Now reminds that the Israeli government has attempted once before to formalize the role of the WZO’s Settlement Division as a legal entity charged with managing and allocating West Bank land. When a bill proposing that move was discussed in the Knesset, it was strongly criticized by then Israeli Deputy Attorney Dina Zilber who said:

“This is about relinquishing the state’s fiduciary obligations in the region and effectively elevating the Settlement Division to a governing body with sweeping authority over land in Judea and Samaria. Land management is one of the most significant authorities that should remain under state control… given that we’re operating in an area controlled by the military commander, an area defined as under belligerent occupation in international law… this territory should be managed by the military commander with consideration for both short-term dynamics and the interests of the protected population, which, in the majority of cases in Judea and Sam aria, happens to be the Palestinian population. Consequently, there’s a collision between short-term considerations and permanent settlements. When a clear governmental authority, originally the responsibility of a proper governmental body, shifts to a non-governmental entity, it’s a concerning change. Here, significant funding is also in play… at the moment, we’re in a situation where the same entity serves as a vital resource manager, funded by the government, but lacks oversight and transparency, providing reports only in hindsight. It wields control over hundreds of thousands of dunams.”

Peace Now said in a statement:

“Allowing the Settlement Division to manage these lands in the occupied territories is comparable to entrusting a fox with guarding the henhouse. This essentially amounts to privatizing land management, which is inconsistent with democratic governance and is unlawful within occupied territories according to international law. The Settlement Division has previously been directly implicated in the appropriation of Palestinian private lands and continues to assist settlers in acquiring extensive lands within the territories, often without public tenders and behind closed doors. It operates autonomously, ignoring the governmental oversight bodies that are supposed to supervise its activities. Despite facing severe criticism from the State Comptroller and the Legal Advisor to the Government in the past, the Netanyahu-Smotrich administration has opted to persist in this direction and formalize the process.”

The settlements that are set to expand – Amichai and Mevo’ot Jericho – are especially notable settlements because of their political contexts and sensitive locations.

The Amichai settlement was approved for construction in 2017, making it (at that time) the first new settlement formally approved by the Israeli government in 25 years. The settlement is located  in the heart of the northern West Bank, in the Shiloh Valley, in an area of settlements that are designed to form an uninterrupted corridor of Israeli control connecting sovereign Israel to the Ariel settlement, through the isolated Shiloh Valley settlements, all the way to the Jordan Valley. In so doing, It will completely bisect the northern part of the West Bank. Aerial imagery from 2021 show the massive growth Amichai has enjoyed in the years that followed its establishment, a previously empty hilltop with cultivated fields nearby have been transformed into a sizable suburban neighborhood. In addition to new construction, Amichai was also massively expanded, subsequent to its initial construction, when the Israeli Civil Administration announced that its plan to retroactively legalize the Adei Ad outpost by significantly expanding the borders of the Amichai settlement to turn Adei Ad into a (non-contiguous) neighborhood. In effect, this was a slight-of-hand by Israel to turn the Adei Ad outpost into an entirely new official, legal settlement. Now, the settlement is set to expand yet again, at the continued cost to Palestinians from the nearby village of Turmus Ayya on whose land Amichai was established and whom settlers from the Amichai outpost and others nearby routinely harass and terrorize.

The Mevo’ot Yericho settlement is located in the Jordan Valley just north of Jericho.  Established illegally as an outpost, the Israeli government granted retroactive legalization to it 2019, just two days before an election. One of Netanyahu’s most prominent campaign pitches was to unilaterally annex the Jordan Valley, of which the legalization of Mevo’ot Yericho was a part. Prior to the government’s decision to legalize Mevo’ot Yericho, Israeli Attorney General Mandleblit had to rescind his earlier objection to the timing of the approval (during an election campaign), apparently having been convinced that granting retroactive legalization to the outpost was an “urgent” matter. According to a source who spoke to The Times of Israel, Netanyahu convinced Mandleblit of the plan’s urgency by informing him that the Trump’s “Deal of the Century” will put outposts, including Mevo’ot Yericho, at risk for evacuation, and that Israel must “combat” the plan before it is published.

Government Delays Smotrich’s New $185 Million Plan to Expand Settlements

Ynet reports that the Israeli government has temporarily paused consideration of a proposal by Bezalel Smotrich to invest some $185million (700 million NIS) into a variety of projects that will enable the rapid growth of settlements, including establishing new settlements, the retroactive legalization of 155 outposts, and building an airport in the northern West Bank.

Ynet further reports that the faces opposition from the Israeli Shin Bet as well as the United States..

During Time as Tourism Minister, Yariv Levin Poured Money into Settlement Projects

Peace Now has published data and analysis on Yariv Levin’s four year tenure as the Israeli Minister of Tourism (2016-2019), during which time he oversaw the investment of $245 million (NIS 929 million) into “tourism” projects in the West Bank. The amount of funds invested in settlement projects amounted to close to half (46%) of the tourism budget for the entire country. 

As a reminder, Israel’s development of tourism sites in the West Bank is part and parcel of its settlement enterprise, and perpetuates land theft, annexation, and the systematic violation of Palestinian rights.

The Peace Now report finds:

  • Over 37% of the development budget, nearly 350 million shekels, was allocated to projects associated with the right-wing and settler organization of Elad, operating in Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem.
  • 84.3% of the investments in Jerusalem went to the Elad settler organization. 
  • In the settlements (excluding East Jerusalem), approximately 70% of the funds submitted for approval to the Ministry of Tourism were approved, while in Israel, only 20% were approved.

For a detailed examination of the projects Levin invested in, please see Peace Now’s report.

Bonus Reads

  1. “Smotrich Takes to PR to Publicize Israeli Demolitions of Palestinian Structures in West Bank” (Haaretz)
  2. “Settlers Killing Palestinians: A History of Impunity” (Haaretz)
  3. “Palestinians blame settler attacks for emptying of 3 West Bank villages” (The Times of Israel)
  4. “Palestinian fears grow amid rising Israeli settler attacks” (BBC)

August 23, 2023

Israeli Government Leaders & Settlers Prep Plans to “Intensify” Settlement Construction in Wake of Deadly Shootings

  • “Smotrich to present Judea and Samaria expansion plan” (Ynet). Excerpt: “Smotrich, who oversees civilian issues in Judea and Samaria as a minister in the Defense Ministry, sent a letter to government ministers notifying them of his intention to present the plan at the next meeting of the full Cabinet. The two-year program to expand development in Judea and Samaria is projected to cost around 700 million shekels ($185 million), and according to estimates that figure could rise to 1 billion shekels ($265 million).”
  • “Settlers present plan to increase West Bank population to 1 million by 2050” (Ynet). Excerpt: “An ambitious plan to reach a population of 1 million Jewish settlers on the West Bank, was presented to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday and includes the establishment of new cities, industrial parks, a hospital and an airport. The plan was devised by Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan that now serves 170,000 Jewish residents…Train lines will connect the West Bank to central and northern Israel and an airport would be built. The authors of the plan said a new hospital would be built, to serve the growing population of settlers as well as new industrial zones to provide employment.”
  • “IDF, defense heads meet settlers to smooth over terror wave tensions” (Ynet). Excerpt: “Gallant said he was committed to strengthening the settlement enterprise and presented the ministry’s latest efforts to the local officials in terms of widening roads to reduce traffic in dangerous areas as well as to increase bullet-proof shielding for student transport vehicles.” Also see: “Gallant thanks settler mayors for ‘complete support’ amid attacks on IDF brass” (The Times of Israel)

Israel Passes 5-Year Plan & $850 Million Budget for East Jerusalem Development

  • Ir Amim statement: “East Jerusalem has been neglected for over 50 years and it is important that the government has decided to continue allocating resources towards reducing the severe economic and social disparities that plague it’s Palestinian communities as a result of its longstanding neglect. Parts of the new decision still include political elements that aggressively advanced Israeli sovereignty, but it is also evident that attention was paid to construction feedback from professionals in drafting the updated plan. Specifically, the addition of a reference to residents’ existential need for “urban planning and residential development’ as well as proper investment in areas such as ‘Community Culture and Leisure’ and ‘Local Initiatives’ is significant. Alongside such sections, it is disturbing to see the government’s concession to Bezalel Smotrich, the Minister of Finance, and subsequent removal of the higher education chapter, as well as the addition of personal security elements pushed by Minister of National Security Ben Gvir, which grants the state more tools to increase the invasive monitoring and surveillance of East Jerusalem’s residents. Jerusalem has long stood between these two conflicting trends; one of which has the potential to intensify the forceful tactics that have torn the city apart, and the other – supporting a city  that longs for a reduction of disparities and a life of dignity for the two peoples for whom Jerusalem is home.”
  • “Cabinet okays $843m development plan for East Jerusalem, while other funds withheld” (The Times of Israel)
  • “Israel No Longer Ignores East Jerusalem, but It’s Avoiding the Hard Questions” (Haaretz)

Settlement Expansion, Settler Violence

News from/about the U.S.

Bonus Reads/Listens

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 17, 2023

  1. New Petition Filed Against Israel Moves to “Legalize” the Homesh Outpost
  2. Israel Massively Expanding Size of Outposts As Part of “Legalization” Process
  3. Israel to Allocate $180million to Settlements & Outposts
  4. Smotrich Orders Outpost Evacuation
  5. Emboldened Settlers Attack Village of Burqa, Murder Palestinian Teen
  6. Bonus Reads

New Petition Filed Against Israel Moves to “Legalize” the Homesh Outpost

Palestinian landowners have filed a new petition with the Israeli High Court of Justice against the legalization of the Homesh outpost on a small sliver of state land surrounded by privately owned Palestinian land. The petition, which was filed in cooperation with the Israeli NGO Yesh Din, comes two weeks after another petition seeking the removal of the outpost was dismissed by the Israeli court. The State has been ordered to submit an initial response by mid-September.

The new challenge asks the Court to reverse the State’s recent transfer of the small amount of state land to the settler regional council for the establishment of the settlement. Instead, the petitioners call for the State to allocate the land for the benefit of Palestinians from the nearby village of Burqa. The request cites the severe discrimination against Palestinians in how the State allocates West Bank land. The petition further argues that, if the Homesh outpost were legalized as an official settlement, it would perpetuate the violation of Palestinians’ property rights and freedom of movement given that the land is surrounded by privately owned Palestinian land. Undoubtedly, Palestinians would be prevented from accessing that land should the settlement remain.

Yesh Din said in a statement:

“The allocation of land to the Samaria Regional Council for the sake of establishing a new settlement deepens the continuation of systemic and blatant discrimination in the allocation of public lands in the West Bank. Less than one percent (! ) From the public lands were allocated for the benefit of the Palestinian public, while 99% were allocated to the settlements factory.

In this case, the purpose of the allocation is to promote political interest of a political level that cannot be part of the considerations of the military commander both according to international law and according to the High Court ruling. And in the specific context, the decision to allocate the land specifically to the Samaria Regional Council – in light of its many years involvement in breaking the law in the region – is unreasonable and in terms of awarding a prize specifically to the factors behind the violation. It even contradicts the authority and the main duty of the military commander to preserve and promote public order.”

As a reminder – Homesh was built on lands historically belonging to the Palestinian village of Burqa. The land was never returned to its Palestinian owners even after the settlement was dismantled in 2005. The legalization of the Homesh yeshiva – which was built illegally by settlers in the area where the Homesh settlement once stood – was explicitly agreed to in the coalition deals which formed the current Israeli government.  On May 18, 2023 the IDF Commander signed a military order that finalized the Knesset’s recent repeal of key sections of the 2005 Disengagement Law, allowing Israelis to legally enter the area in the northern West Bank where the Homesh settlement stood before it was dismantled. In parallel, the Israeli Defense Minister announced that the government plans to relocate the Homesh outpost from its current location on land that Israeli courts have recognized as private Palestinian property, to a small plot of nearby “state land.” Settlers quickly rebuilt the yeshiva on the “state land” and the new outpost was soon connected to the State water grid.

Israel Massively Expanding Size of Outposts As Part of “Legalization” Process

As part of the process of granting retroactive legalization to the outposts of Asa’el and Avigail (both located in the South Hebron Hills), the IDF recently published new maps of the proposed jurisdiction of the new settlements, showing that the government is planning to massively expand the new settlements’ boundaries. The Israel government approved the outposts for retroactive legalization, along with eight others, in February 2023. Now that the maps have been published, the public has 21 days to submit objections to the plans.

The Israeli non-profit Kerem Navot reports that the proposed new boundary of the Asa’el settlement is eighteen times larger than the outpost. The boundary of the Avigail settlement is nearly three times the size of the outpost. The Avigail outpost is located in Firing Zone 918 in the South Hebron Hills. This is the same firing zone that is home to the Palestinian communities of Masafer Yatta — whose existence pre-dates Israel’s declaration of the area as a firing zone. Those communities are today in the process of being ethnically cleansed by Israel.

Both Avigail and Asael have, illegally, built access roads on privately owned Palestinian land. Legalization of the outposts will undoubtedly also include the theft of the Palestinian-owned land these roads were illegally built on.

Israel to Allocate $180million to Settlements & Outposts

According to news reports, the Israeli government will soon vote to allocate an additional $180million (NIS 670 million) in the 2023-2024 state budget to settlements, including over $7 million (NIS 27.6 million) specifically for improving infrastructure in unauthorized outposts. The effort is being led by Finance Minister and minister in the Defense Ministry Bezalel Smotrich aligned with Settlements Minister Orit Strock. Ynet reports that the new funding calls for the conversion of five IDF bases in the West Bank to be converted into new settlements or industrial zones.

Peace Now reports further details of the budget:

  • $25 million (NIS 95 million) allocated directly to the World Zionist Organization’s Settlement Division. As a reminder, the Settlement Division is a body within the WZO established in 1971 and fully funded by the Israeli government. Its mission was, and remains, to provide a channel by which the government can establish settlements – legally and illegally – in the occupied territories, while avoiding the pesky rules, regulations, and transparency requirements to which government entities are bound. The Israel government assigned management responsibilities to the WZO for over 60% of the land in the West Bank which the government declared to be “state land” (90,000 acres/400,000 dumans). The WZO has given that land to settlers to build settlements and secretly funnel government money to illegal outposts.
  • $13 million (NIS 50 million) for encouraging Israeli Jewish citizens to move to settlements
  • $3.6 million (NIS 13.7 million) for developing West Bank archaeological tourism sites, which comes in addition to the May 2023 invest of $9 million into these sites.
  • $11.9 million (NIS 45 million) for the establishment of a new hospital.
  • $15 million (NIS 57 million) for encouraging Israelis and others to move to the settlements.

The budget for these investments is being taken from the budgets of domestic programs.

Peace Now said in a statement:

“The Government of Israel is exerting all its power and the budget at its disposal to support one specific sector at the expense of the entire public. The allocation of 700 million NIS by the current government decision is evidence of the public officials’ shamelessness in prioritizing the interests of a small group living in occupied territory over the broader Israeli society. Instead of investing in Israel’s future, the Israeli government is pouring money into settlements, perpetuating the occupation, and fueling the conflict and confrontation with the Palestinians.”

Smotrich Orders Outpost Evacuation

On August 14th, on the orders of Bezalel Smotrich the IDF dismantled five buildings in an illegal outpost called “Aira Shahar“, from lands located east of Ramallah. The outpost remains on the land, with at least 15 structures allowed to remain. In explaining the demolition of the five buildings, Smotrich stressed that he attempted to negotiate the relocation of the buildings from lands recognized as privately owned Palestinian land to nearby state land. But settlers did not agree, and even attempted to stop the security forces from demolitioning the buildings by burning tires and scattering spikes on the access road.

Smotrich took heavy criticism from members of his own parties and the settlers who he serves. In his defense, Smotrich said:

“We are talking about several new buildings that were erected on regulated and private lands that belong to Arabs. We really want to settle anywhere in the Land of Israel, but there are laws and restrictions. We are doing things that have not been done for many years.”

Bonus Reads

  1. “Samaria farms open to public touring for the first time” (Arutz Sheva)
  2. “6 Things to Remember When Covering Israeli Settler Violence“ (IMEU)
  3. “West Bank: Entire Palestinian communities disappeared due to Israeli settler violence” (Norwegian Refugee Council)
  4. “Settlements Are the Engine of Israel’s ‘Forever Occupation’—and a War Crime” (Michael Lynk for DAWN)
  5. “The settlers wanted supreme power. They got a rebellion instead” (Meron Rapoport for +972 Magazine)
  6. “Palestinian Family Evicted From East Jerusalem Home Ordered to Pay for Own Eviction” (Haaretz)
  7. “‘Israel wanted a silent, perfect victim. We refused’” (+972 Magazine)
  8. “Ex-Israeli General Says Army Partner in West Bank War Crimes, Invokes Nazi Germany” (Haaretz)
  9. “Israeli Court Orders Release of Settler Suspected of Killing Palestinian in West Bank” (Haaretz)
  10. “Israel Prevents Palestinians From Defending Themselves as It Empowers the Settlers” (Amira Hass for Haaretz)
  11. “Radical Settlers Now Control the Israeli Government. This One Became a Left-wing Activist” (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 10, 2023

  1. Has Israel Annexed the West Bank?
  2. Peace Now Data: Unprecedented Level of Settlement Growth in 2023
  3. Israel Says It Will Freeze Part of Nof Zion Expansion Plan, Cites Environmental Concerns
  4. Settler Violence Coerces Fourth Bedouin Community to Leave Area C Homelands, Handing More Territory to Settlers
  5. Emboldened Settlers Attack Village of Burqa, Murder Palestinian Teen
  6. Bonus Reads

Has Israel Annexed the West Bank?

Make sure to check out the latest episode of FMEP’s podcast, “Has Israel Annexed the West Bank,” featuring Shira Livne (Association for Civil Rights in Israel) and Kristin McCarthy (FMEP, and author of the Settlement Report!). The two discuss all things annexation, including: how is annexation related to the current judicial reforms? What has annexation looked like previous to the current government? How significant are the changes in governance that the current government has taken? Should we consider the West Bank, or just Area C, annexed?

Listen here.

Peace Now Data: Unprecedented Level of Settlement Growth in 2023

According to Peace Now data, the government of Israel has accelerated settlement growth in 2023 so much so that – only seven months into the year – it has broken several records. The data shows that in 2023, the government of Israel has:

  • Granted retroactive legalization to 22 outposts – making them new, authorized settlements, more than in any year previous.
  • Allowed the establishment of at least five new (illegal) outposts (not that settlers have attempted to establish many more. Peace Now reports that the IDF has evacuated more outposts this year than it did during an average year in the past, showing how emboldened settlers are acting in the current environment.
  • Issued tenders for 1,289 new settlement units – this is more than any year since the signing of the Oslo Accords.
  • Approved 12,855 new settlement units – more than in all of 2020 (12,000 settlement units approved).

Israel Says It Will Freeze Part of Nof Zion Expansion Plan, Cites Environmental Concerns

On August, the Israeli state informed the Jerusalem District Court that it has chosen to freeze a plan to relocated a police station from the Jabal al-Mukaber neighborhood, which was planned in order to allow the Nof Zion settlement enclave to expand onto the land where the current/old police station is located. According to the Times of Israel, the state said that it is negotiating with the Ramy Levy – an Israeli entrepreneur who owns the building rights for the land where the current police station is located (Levy owns an empire of settlement superstores) – to build a new police station as part of the massive expansion of the enclave.

The State said its decision was made in consideration of a petition against the new police station submitted by environmental groups concerned that the construction would destroy the area’s unique plant ecosystem. Notably, the Israeli NGO Ir Amim also filed a petition against the police station plan, arguing that it is an affront to the planning needs of the local community and that it represents a continuation of Israel’s systematic, city-wide discrimination against the housing, educational, and service-based needs of Palestinian neighborhoods.

Settler Violence Coerces Fourth Bedouin Community to Leave Area C Homelands, Handing More Territory to Settlers

On August 6th the al-Qaboun bedouin community was forcibly coerced by IDF harassment and settler violence to abandon their lands east of Ramallah, where they had lived since 1996. The community number 86 people, including 10 children. This is the fourth bedouin community in recent months that has been forced to leave their land because of Israeli pressure.

B’Tselem reports that settlers established an outpost near al-Qaboun in February 2023 and have since used violence, harassment, and intimidation to take control of the village’s grazing lands – denying the people their livelihood. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights further reports that the IDF closed all roads leading to the village.

B’Tselem states:

“Al-Qabun is the fourth community in the area that has had to flee due to Israeli policies, which force impossible conditions on local residents in order to push them to leave, thus clearing the way for it to take over their lands and transfer them to Jewish hands. These policies include banning residential and infrastructure construction, including water, electricity and roads; establishing and financially supporting settlements on Palestinian lands; and violent attacks by settlers on an almost daily basis. All of these are aimed at upholding, preserving and empowering Jewish supremacy.”

Emboldened Settlers Attack Village of Burqa, Murder Palestinian Teen

On the evening of August 4th, 40-50 armed settlers associated with the Oz Zion outpost attacked the Palestinian village of Burqa – the village that continues to protest the Homesh outpost, which was built on its land. Settlers claim they were “just” grazing their sheep, but they came armed with M-16s, clubs, and pistols, and evidence found near two  two cars that had been set on fire suggest the settlers came to commit arson. As settlers came within 250 meters of homes in the village, two settlers arrived in a car and fired indiscriminately towards a group of Palestinians, killing 19-year-old Palestinian Qosai Jammal Mi’tan and injuring several others. 

It’s worth noting that the Oz Zion outpost has been, in the past, repeatedly evacuated by the IDF. Earlier this year, as is his purview as a minister with the Defense Ministry charged with civilian affairs in Area C, Bezalel Smotrich shielded Oz Tzion from being evacuated again.

Two settlers were arrested for involvement, one of which was quickly released to house arrest while the other remained in custody as the primary suspect in firing the deadly shot. The settler who was released despite involvement in the shooting, Elisha Yared, is well known for his violent, extremist views, having previously served as a spokesman for the MK Limor Son Har-Melech (Otzma Yehudit) – and articulated his support for collective punishment in a recent interview with Israel Hayom.

In an absolutely absurd display of the government’s unapologetic support for Jewish terrorism, Secruty Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir criticized media coverage of the settler’s arrest, saying “A Jew who defends himself and others from murder by Palestinians is not a murder suspect, but a hero who will get full backing from me.”Separately, two Knesset members (Zvi Sukkot and X) were given permission by Israeli police to visit Yared in the hospital, celebrating him as a hero. In response, a senior Israeli security source told Al-Monitor:

“This is incredibly outrageous…This is a meeting that could easily lead to evidence tampering and disrupt the police investigation. There was no reason to approve it. This is part of the anarchy that is taking over the rule of law system in Israel.”

Elisha Yared lives in the illegal Ramat Migron outpost, an outpost which has been repeatedly demolished by the IDF.

Five Palestinians were also arrested for throwing stones at the invading settlers. All were released after several days in custody.The Palestinian Center for Human Rights reports that so far this year, “settlers have conducted at least 293 attacks against Palestinian civilians and their property. As a result, 9 Palestinians were killed, and dozens of others were injured; most of them due to being beaten and thrown with stones. Also, dozens of houses, vehicles and civilian facilities were set ablaze.”

Haaretz journalist Neri Zelber reported that the Israel Army Radio received data from the IDF showing that the first six months of 2023 as already seen more settler attacks than in the entire 2022 year. The IDF data counts 25 terrorist attacks and 680 clashes.

Bonus Reads

  1. “The Civil Administration acknowledges extreme discrimination in building permits and law enforcement between Palestinians and settlers” (Peace Now)
  2. “Armed With an M16 and Jewish Privilege, This Settler Makes Palestinians’ Lives Hell” (Haaretz)
  3. “Extremist Israeli Settlers Aren’t Innocent Shepherds. They Are Thirsty for a Provocation” (Haaretz)
  4. “Netanyahu in Golan: ‘Territory that will forever remain under Israeli sovereignty’” (Arutz Sheva)