Settlement Report: October 4, 2017

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

To receive this report via email, please click here.

October 4, 2017

Bibi Backs Bill to Annex Settlements into Jerusalem’s Municipality (and Cut Out Palestinians)
Tenders for Givat Hamatos to be Issued in Coming Months
Eastern Ring Road Construction Has Started, Enabling Future E-1 Construction
Ambassador Friedman Says Settlements Are Part of Israel, Gives Settlement Growth a Green Light
Putting It All Together: Israeli Actions and U.S. Statements
Update: Amichai Construction Stalled (Again)
Bonus Reads

Comments, questions, or suggestions? Email Kristin McCarthy at kmccarthy@fmep.org.

Bibi Backs Bill to Annex Settlements into Jerusalem’s Municipality (and Cut Out Palestinians)

On October 2nd while speaking in the Ma’ale Adumim settlement east of Jerusalem, Netanyahu announced his support for the “Greater Jerusalem” bill, a piece of legislation that proposes annexing 19 settlements into Israel’s Jerusalem municipality while simultaneously creating new municipalities for Palestinian neighborhoods in East Jerusalem that fall on the West Bank side of the separation wall. FMEP covered similar legislation in our July 28th Settlement Report. At the event, Netanyahu also promised thousands of new units for the settlement and vowed that it will be a part of Israel forever.

The legislation’s author, Yisrael Katz (Likud) who serves as both the Minister of Transportation and the Minister of Intelligence, explained the bill’s purpose is to “strengthen Jerusalem by adding thousands of Jewish residents to the city, while simultaneously weakening the Arab hold on the capital.” Netanyahu has members of his governing coalition to formally introduce the “Greater Jerusalem” bill by the end of the year.

Jerusalem expert Daniel Seidemann reported previously on the bill in detail here. Writing about this latest development, he observed: “Such a move has correctly been viewed in the past as tantamount to de facto annexation and the erasure of the Green Line…a new and deeply disturbing geopolitical reality is taking shape before our very eyes.”

Tenders for Givat Hamatos to be Issued in Coming Months

Terrestrial Jerusalem reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to allow tenders to be issued for the establishment of the two-state ending Givat Hamatos settlement, in the southern part of Jerusalem. Rumors of these tenders first emerged in August of this year.

Map by Peace Now

If constructed, Givat Hamatos will be the first new government-backed Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem since the establishment of Har Homa in 1997. The settlement will complete the barrier of settlements that sever Palestinian East Jerusalem from Bethlehem to its south, and inside Jerusalem will complete the isolation of the Palestinian neighborhood of Beit Safafa from any possible connection to the West Bank. Givat Hamatos will thus prevent a border from being drawn in Jerusalem along the lines of the Clinton Parameters (i.e., according to which Palestinian neighborhoods are part of Palestine and Israeli neighborhoods are part of Israel), and in a manner that permits the emergence of a Palestinian state with a viable capital in Jerusalem.

Eastern Ring Road Construction Has Started, Enabling Future E-1 Construction

Peace Now reports that Israel has started construction on a controversial and highly consequential portion of the “Eastern Ring Road” in the E-1 area. If this section of the road is completed and opened, it will redirect Palestinian traffic around the E-1 settlement area, ostensibly paving the way for construction of the two-state ending settlement. In June 2017, Ir Amim reported that Israel had approved a budget for the construction of this segment of the road.

Map by Peace Now

The “Eastern Ring Road” is often called the “Apartheid Road” because the separation wall runs down the middle of the road, separating Palestinian and Israeli settler traffic. Israel designed the Eastern Ring Road, which is still incomplete after years of stalled construction, to solve several problems it faces in connecting Israeli settlements to Jerusalem.

Peace Now explains:

This road is part of a future road, which, if completed, will allow Israel to build in E-1 and divide the West Bank in two on the pretext that the road provides a solution to the Palestinian need to connect north to south. However, the Palestinian need is not only a question of transportation, but also a question of territory and the possibility to develop the areas at the heart of the West Bank, without which a viable Palestinian state cannot be established.

This start of this new construction comes in the context of other developments that seem to signal a serious intent to move forward with E-1. Specifically, the ongoing Israeli government plans to expel Bedouin living in the area (discussed in detail in last week’s Settlement Report) and Netanyahu’s now open embrace of legislation to effectively annex the area to Jerusalem (discussed above).

Ambassador Friedman Says Settlements Are Part of Israel, Gives Settlement Growth a Green Light

In his first on-camera interview since taking office, U.S. Ambassador David Friedman told an Israeli news outlet that Israel’s settlements are a part of Israel, breaking with 50 years of bipartisan U.S. policy that distinguishes between sovereign Israel and its settlements.

Ambassador Friedman, who personally raised money for the Beit El settlement before taking office, said:

I think the settlements are part of Israel… There was always supposed to be some notion of expansion into the West Bank, but not necessarily expansion into the entire West Bank. And I think that’s exactly what, you know, Israel has done. I mean, they’re only occupying 2% of the West Bank. There is important nationalistic, historical, religious significance to those settlements, and I think the settlers view themselves as Israelis and Israel views the settlers as Israelis.

The U.S. Department of State has not clarified Ambassador Friedman’s remarks, but has said that his comments do not represent a shift in U.S. policy. This is the second time this month that the Administration has had to publicly distance itself from controversial pro-settlement remarks by the Ambassador. However, State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert created more consternation when she was unable to clarify on record how much of the West Bank the U.S. believes to be occupied(though she was asked twice over the past week).

Additionally, days before the interview, Ambassador Friedman and U.S. Special Envoy Jason Greenblatt reportedly told Netanyahu that the U.S. accepts a distinction between what Israel calls its “settlement blocs” and far-flung, isolated settlements. Netanyahu relayed news of the (alleged) major U.S. policy shift during a private meeting with settler leaders. According to meeting participants, Netanyahu also claimed the U.S. Ambassador gave him permission to continue expanding Israeli settlements, but had warned Israel not to go overboard.

As we noted last week, actors in Israel and in the U.S. have been pushing for the U.S. to adopt such a distinction, which would allow Israel to annex the “settlement blocs” outside of the framework of a peace deal. The campaign is further evidenced by a new article written by Eli Lake, quoting Elliot Abrams extensively, defending Ambassador Friedman’s remarks about settlements being a part of Israel and arguing for Israel’s unilateral annexation of the blocs.

As we also noted last week, FMEP President Lara Friedman has written extensively against the normalization and annexation on the so-called settlement blocs. Dating back to 2013 she wrote that this approach:

“…is a recipe not for strengthening the two-state solution, but for imposing a unilateral Israeli vision of a Greater Israel extending beyond the Green Line, adjacent to a balkanized Palestinian entity. Such an outcome may be appealing to Benjamin Netanyahu and his U.S. apologists. It will never be acceptable to the Palestinians and the international community, and it certainly shouldn’t be mistaken for a “solution” to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

Americans for Peace Now (APN) is calling on President Trump to fire Friedman. Debra DeLee, APN’s President & CEO, said that Ambassador Friedman’s comments are “outrageous, unacceptable, and flat-out wrong” and that “Americans should be appalled to hear our ambassador parrot this disingenuous argument, in effect revealing himself as a spokesman for the extremist ideological settler population, rather than a faithful representative of the US government.”

J Street also released a statement lambasting the Ambassador’s remarks, saying

Eradicating that distinction and normalizing settlements as “part of Israel” would severely damage the prospects for a two-state solution and undermine the United States’ capacity to act as helpful facilitator in reaching a deal to end the conflict. Such a change in policy would strengthen the position of Israel’s settlement movement and rejectionist right….While the State Department’s clarification is important, it remains unacceptable that the chief American diplomatic representative in Israel continues to misrepresent and undermine long-standing US policy. His statements are a stark reminder of why Friedman’s nomination to be ambassador to Israel faced an unprecedented level of congressional opposition, with a record 46 senators voting against. It is now clear that concerns about Friedman as an official representative of the United States because of his long history of close ideological and financial ties to the settlement movement were well-founded.

Putting It All Together: Israeli Actions and U.S. Statements

A few of the major Jerusalem-area developments over the past couple months include:

The advancement of the “Greater Jerusalem” bill that will annex Israeli settlements to the Jerusalem municipality and cut out Palestinian neighborhoods of East Jerusalem. [reported above]
The advancement of settlement plans in Palestinian areas of East Jerusalem and surrounding settlements including Ramat Shlomo/Neve Ya’akov. [Terrestrial Jerusalem]
An uptick in evictions and demolitions in Palestinian neighborhoods of East Jerusalem (Silwan, Sheikh Jarrah, and Issawiya to name a few) and al-Walajah (part of al-Walajah is inside of the Jerusalem municipality, this is the area where the threat of evictions and is most acute).
Israel’s stated plan to forcibly relocate the Khan al-Ahmar community from the area near the E-1 and Ma’ale Adumim settlements. [B’Tselem]
News of imminent tenders for the Givat Hamatos settlement and for the expansion of the Nof Zion settlement enclave inside of a Palestinian East Jerusalem neighborhood. [Terrestrial Jerusalem & Peace Now]
The resumption of construction of the “Eastern Ring Road” which paves the way for Israel to build in E-1. [Peace Now]

Over the same period, the key statements from Trump Administration officials have been:

Amb. Friedman and Jason Greenblatt reportedly told Israel not to “go overboard” on settlement growth, but gave a clear green light for settlement growth.
In an on-camera interview with Walla Israel, Amb. Friedman said that settlements are a part of Israel and that Israel is only occupying 2% of the West Bank.
Amb. Friedman referred to the “alleged occupation” in an interview with the Jerusalem Post,
The State Department has been unable to explain or clarify Ambassador Friedman’s remarks regarding the amount of the West Bank that Israel is occupying, or the status of Israeli settlements.
The Trump administration continues its refusal to directly comment on any specific settlement announcement, and has yet to do so with this week’s news regarding the “Greater Jerusalem” bill.

The United State’s diplomatic pressure has played an historically important role in dissuading Israel from pursuing two-state ending settlement activity in the Jerusalem area. That diplomatic pressure, it seems, is no longer a factor.

Update: Amichai Construction Stalled (Again)

The construction of the new settlement of “Amichai” has once again stalled. This week the government reportedly declined to expedite the transfer of funds to the contractor building Amichai, instead requiring the contractor to go through the planning process to acquire and additional tender. Until the tender is officially approved by the government, the contractor is unable to continue the construction due to lack of funds.

The new settlement of Amichai was approved earlier this year as a pay-off for the families who illegally established the Amona outpost and were forcibly evacuated earlier this year. Amichai is the first new West Bank settlement to be approved by the Israeli government in the past 25 years.

Bonus Reads

“How Settlers Turn Archeological Sites Into Political Tools” (Al Monitor)
“UN Special Envoy Says Israel Ignoring Demand to Halt Settlements” (Times of Israel)
“Apartheid in Hebron” (Arab American Institute)
“Goods from Israel Settlements Granted Preferential EU Trade Deals” (Middle East Monitor)
“Despite Police Restrictions, MKs Tour East Jerusalem” (Jerusalem Post)

FMEP has long been a trusted resource on settlement-related issues, reflecting both the excellent work of our grantees on the ground and our own in-house expertise. FMEP’s focus on settlements derives from our commitment to achieving lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace, and our recognition of the fact that Israeli settlements – established for the explicit purpose of dispossessing Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem of land and resources, and depriving them of the very possibility of self-determination in their own state with borders based on the 1967 lines – are antithetical to that goal.

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

To receive this report via email, please subscribe here.

June 16, 2017

1. Netanyahu’s Trump-Era Settlement Policy

2. Abbas & Netanyahu Harden Positions on the Future of Settlers

3. Must-Read: “How Many Settlers Really Live in the West Bank?”

4. Shin Bet Moves Against Radical Settler Activists

For questions and comments please contact FMEP’s Director of Policy & Operations, Kristin McCarthy (kmccarthy@fmep.org).

Netanyahu’s Trump-Era Settlement Policy

There is war of words about what Netanyahu’s Trump-era settlement policy actually is. According to settler leaders, Netanyahu is implementing a freeze; according to Netanyahu’s cabinet, he has given settlement construction a green light; and according to the U.S., he is expected to follow a policy of “restraint.” Notably, there has been no official statement by the Trump administration following the last week’s major settlement announcement.

Who is right? Here are the important facts and developments so far with respect to 2017 settlement growth:

Large #s of Settlement Units Advanced: So far in 2017, plans for 4,909 new settlement housing units have been advanced through the planning process, according to Israel’s Peace Now. Of these, 3,178 were advanced at the June 6-7 meeting of the High Planning Council. And also according to Peace Now, tenders for 2,942 new settlement housing units been issued for imminent construction (meaning there are 2,942 new units actually being built, or about to be). Peace Now, which has tracked settlement growth for decades, based on the Government of Israel’s own officials numbers, notes that these 2017 numbers are “85% more than the housing units promoted during all of 2016 and in half the time.”
A brand new settlement approved: Earlier this month, Netanyahu’s government has advanced the construction of the first entirely new settlement in 25 years, “Amichai” (a gift to “compensate” settlers who had built/taken up residence illegally in the outpost of Amona, and who were forced to move after the Netanyahu government exhausted all possible means to legalize their illegal acts).
Illegal outpost legalized: Also earlier this month, the Netanyahu government moved to retroactively “legalize” the illegally-built outpost of “Kerem Reim,” west of Ramallah.
Jerusalem plans looming but not moving (yet): Despite high profile reports that the government is close to issuing tenders for construction of Givat Hamatos in addition to advancing plans for Ramat Shlomo and Atarot, none of these actions have happened yet. These plans are particularly alarming for the future of Jerusalem and would preclude the contiguity of a future state of Palestine. Likewise, despite similarly high profile reports that the government is going to expedite the advancement of a visitor’s center abutting the Jewish Cemetery on the Mt. of Olives, the government has not yet advanced plans for its approval.

Abbas & Netanyahu Harden Positions on the Future of Settlers

Haaretz is reporting that Netanyahu is now demanding any peace agreement must allow all Israeli settlers to stay where they are, under Israeli rule. This represents a sharp departure from the past Netanyahu demands, as revealed by negotiation documents from the 2014 Kerry effort.

Abbas, on the other hand, is now signaling that he cannot accept a peace deal that leaves even a single settler in the future state of Palestine – also a new position since 2014.

Previously, both Netanyahu and Abbas posited that – at least in principle – some Israeli settlers could be allowed to remain in Palestine under Palestinian jurisdiction – meaning they would become citizens of Palestine (and that their settlements would not remain exclusively Jewish communities). The 2014 policy iterations were (and still are) untenable for both sides, but so too are their new positions.

3. Must-Read: “How Many Settlers Really Live in the West Bank?”

Haaretz has an investigative report out this week delving deep into the demographics of Israelis living east of the 1967 Green Line, in violation of international law (and in some cases, in violation of Israeli law as well). Highlights from the report:

There are 380,000 settlers in the West Bank, not including East Jerusalem settlements.
178,000 settlers in the West Bank live outside of the major settlement blocs (44% of total); notably, the Haaretz report does not make clear how it defined settlement “blocs” (the term has no formal or legal definition).
These figures do not include outposts. According to Peace Now, there are 97 outposts with thousands of settlers populating them.

Shin Bet Moves Against Radical Settler Activists

The Israeli Shin Bet appears to be more actively moving to stop the pattern of violence emanating from the Yitzhar settlement, located deep inside the northern West Bank, in connection to the “Hilltop Youth” movement. This week the extremist rabbi and Yitzhar settler Yosef Elitzur was indicted on incitement charges. Elitzur is a prolific writer and teacher known for his religious justification for Jews killing non-Jews. Elitzur is the third Yitzhar settler to be prosecuted in recent weeks for incitement to violence; two others were also convicted because of violent content in articles they published online.

Additionally, nine Israeli teenagers were arrested in Jerusalem this week. There is a gag order in place over the case, but we do know the teenage settlers were arrested while at the house of Yitzhar settler and “Hilltop Youth” movement leader Elkana Pikar. Pikar himself was recently, issued a restraining order requiring him to stay away from the West Bank for four months and banning him from meeting with a list of identified activists for six months. He must also report weekly to Israeli police in the Maale Adumim settlement. Pikar is believed to have been directly involved in a string of recent violent acts perpetrated by Yitzhar extremists in the Nablus area. Notably, the Deputy Speaker of the Knesset rushed to Pikar’s defense following a previous ruling against him, saying that Elitzur is “the only one [who] has managed to get through to the Hilltop Youth and keep them in check a little.”

Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about what is happening this week related to Israeli settlement activity – news, context, background, and why it matters.

To receive this report via email, please subscribe here.

May 19, 2017

Statements on Israeli Settlements by the Trump Administration
Bibi to ask for Trump’s Approval of Massive Settlement Blueprint During Visit
Plans Actively Moving to Start Construction on Two-State-Ending Settlements
Updates: Amona, More Settler Violence in Nablus, New Jordan Valley Outpost

Comments, questions, or suggestions? Email Kristin McCarthy at kmccarthy@fmep.org.

Statements on Israeli Settlements by the Trump Administration

Ahead of President Donald Trump’s first visit to Israel, there is still some debate about whether the United States has already shifted its policy on Israeli settlements. Here are Trump officials in their own words:

May 16, 2017: U.S. Ambassador David Friedman, ahead of President Trump’s arrival in Israel and anticipated peace push, said, “we have no demand for a settlement freeze.” Also: “If you look at what the president has said since taking office about settlements, his position has been remarkably different than the Obama administration’s. He has not come out and said that settlements are an obstacle to peace; he has not called for a settlement freeze; he has worked for the Israelis to come up with a common understanding about how they might proceed. The president is aware of the Israeli government’s need to replace the Amona community [reference to settler law-breakers evicted from an illegal outpost].”

March 20-23, 2017: In a read out of joint U.S.-Israel consultations on peace negotiations, the White House reported, “The two delegations also discussed Israeli settlement construction, following up on Prime Minister Netanyahu’s visit to Washington and Mr. Greenblatt’s recent visit to Israel. The United States delegation reiterated President Trump’s concerns regarding settlement activity in the context of moving towards a peace agreement. The Israeli delegation made clear that Israel’s intent going forward is to adopt a policy regarding settlement activity that takes those concerns into consideration. The talks were serious and constructive, and they are ongoing.”

February 15, 2017: At a press conference alongside PM Netanyahu at the White House, President Trump said, “As far as settlements, I’d like to see you hold back on settlements for a little bit. We’ll work something out.” On the same day, the White House released a read-out of Netanyahu & Trump’s private meeting, relaying “The two leaders discussed the issue of Israeli settlement construction, and agreed to continue those discussions and to work out an approach that is consistent with the goal of advancing peace and security.”

February 2, 2017: In an official statement issued after Israel announced significant new settlement plans in the West Bank, the White House said “While we don’t believe the existence of settlements is an impediment to peace, the construction of new settlements or the expansion of existing settlements beyond their current borders may not be helpful in achieving that goal.”

Bibi to ask for Trump’s Approval of Massive Settlement Blueprint During Visit

PM Netanyahu will reportedly ask for President Trump’s approval of a massive blueprint for future settlement construction that includes highly sensitive areas beyond the 1967 Green Line – including construction of Givat Hamatos and Atarot in Jerusalem (see below).

If Netanyahu in fact presents a map detailing plans for new construction, it will be a major test of President Trump’s still-unconfirmed policy shift on settlements, which is speculated to include an American “ok” for construction in East Jerusalem, settlement blocs and “bloc-adjacent” areas. As detailed previously, this shift – if it has in fact taken place – should be understood as a green light for massive settlement growth across the West Bank. The U.S. may not be the only party considering giving this green light to settlement growth; the Wall Street Journal reported this week that some Arab gulf countries are also considering accepting the parameter (the world is awaiting confirmation of this report).

Hoping for Trump’s approval of this blueprint, PM Netanyahu’s office reportedly intervened to delay a meeting of the High Planning Committee (which oversees all construction in the Occupied Territories) until after President Trump’s visit.

Plans Actively Moving to Start Construction on Two-State-Ending Settlements

New details have emerged on two alarming settlement developments that could imminently affect the future of Jerusalem, and thus any hopes of a two state solution.

Givat Hamatos

Final tenders for the construction of Givat Hamatos are could to be published soon, at which point construction will soon start on the ground. This settlement, will completely sever Palestinian communities in Jerusalem from the West Bank, and will prevent a future division of Jerusalem that leaves Palestinian areas under Palestinian sovereignty and Israeli areas under Israeli sovereignty (map). Publishing tenders for 2,000 units in Givat Hamatos – which is, again, imminently expected – will spell the end to the future possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state. For more on Givat Hamatos – history, maps, state of play, and consequences – see the expert analysis of Terrestrial Jerusalem and Peace Now Israel.

Atarot

Israel may soon approve a plan for 10,000 units to create an ultra-orthodox settler neighborhood in Atarot, the site of a disused airport in the northern part of East Jerusalem, extending to Ramallah’s southern border. To date, no official planning approvals have been published for public review – which means that the Atarot plan has a potentially long bureaucratic process to navigate. The site was reportedly promised as the airport of a future Palestinian state. The construction of a new settlement at the site will compromise the territorial integrity of a future Palestinian state, as well as preventing a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem. For more on Atarot, read this analysis from Jerusalem expert Danny Seidemann.

Additionally, in the center of the West Bank, a regional council run by Israeli settlers has begun soliciting construction bids to expand the illegal settlement of Kochav Yaakov. The growth – in the settlement’s ultra orthodox neighborhood called Tel Zion – was technically approved by in 1980 but never constructed. Some 37 years later, the settler council officially opened the bidding process to construct 209 new apartments. Peace Now’s Settlement Watch director Hagit Ofran noted, “There are tens of thousands of units [like these] that could be built under old plans. In practice, there was no [construction] freeze and there is no freeze in the settlements. This is a large project beyond the separation barrier that will continue to undermine the two-state solution.”

Updates: Amona Outpost-ers, More Settler Violence in Nablus, New Jordan Valley Outpost

Here are short, but important, updates on settlement news we covered in previous editions of FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report:

Already facing planning delays on their new settlement, the law-breaking Amona outpost-ers attempted to get expedited approval on “temporary” construction at their desired Shilo Valley hilltop; that temporary approval is now facing bureaucratic delays of it’s own.
The greater Nablus area is once again becoming a major flashpoint of settler violence in the West Bank. A string of settler attacks on local Palestinians (and their property) escalated when a settler shot and killed a Palestinian stone-thrower in Huwarra. The settler’s gun fire also wounded a photographer with the Associated Press.
In the northern Jordan Valley, Palestinian press is reporting a new illegal outpost being constructed by radical settlers.