Welcome to FMEP’s Weekly Settlement Report, covering everything you need to know about Israeli settlement activity this week.
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**The regular FMEP Settlement & Annexation report is on break, and is planned to return around the first week of August. In the meantime, we are pleased to offer you links to the main settlement-related stories of the past week**
April 7, 2022
- Settlements at the Center of Israeli Domestic Political Upheaval
- Violence/Terrorism/Outposts
- Jerusalem
- Other West Bank Settlement News
- Further Reading
Settlements at the Center of Israel Domestic Political Upheaval
Yamina MK issues ultimatum to Bennett on remaining in coalition (Times of Israel) [Excerpt: “Orbach said Thursday he had three demands for remaining in the government: the reversal of the government’s plan to cancel daycare subsidies for yeshiva students; the convening of the planning commission to approve building plans for 4,000 new homes in the West Bank; and the connection of illegal settlement outposts to the power grid.”]
Settlements at center of coalition crisis with MK Orbach ultimatum (Jerusalem Post 4/7/22) [also see: Tweet from JPost’s Lahav Harkov (who authored the article – “So Liberman and Orbach reached an agreement on daycare subsidies for haredim. But that was never the biggest issue, and may have been a red herring. Nor is it chametz. Settlements are at the center of the coalition crisis with MK“]
In Ultimatum, Bennett Ally Demands Settlement Construction for Not Joining Netanyahu’s Opposition (Haaretz 4/7/22)
PA condemns Israel PM’s pledge to continue building settlements in West Bank (Middle East Monitor 4/6/22)
Tweet from ICG’s Mairav Zonszein 4/5/22, re-tweeting/translating tweet from @GLZRadio: “Bennett today: ‘We will continue building in Judea and Samaria [West Bank]; there will be no freeze. Things will happen as per usual.’ In other words, de facto annexation is the natural order.”
Settlers accuse Gantz of freezing plans for 4,000 West Bank homes (Jerusalem Post 4/4/22)
Settler leader threatens to petition High Court over holes in security fence (Jewish News Syndicate 4/4/22)
Israel: Justice minister says gov’t won’t cease settlement building (i24 4/3/22)
Sa’ar vows government won’t freeze settlement building (Times of Israel 4/3/22)
Israel delays approval of thousands of West Bank settlement homes (YNet 4/3/22)
Five Vehicles Set Ablaze in Palestinian Village in Suspected Hate Crime (Haaretz 3/28/22)
Violence/Terrorism/Outposts
Much of the daily violence by settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank is being documented/reported in real time on Twitter, including threads/video) documenting settler harassment & violence against Palestinians and Israel solidarity activists (and IDF inaction/complicity). For examples, see: Basel Adra; Basel Adra, Center for Jewish Nonviolence; IMEU, Good Shepherd Collective
Jalud, Nablus District: Israeli settlers throw stones at home and burn down five cars (Report + video from B’Tselem 4/7/22)
Mikhmas, Ramallah District: Settlers documented smashing windows of house and vandalizing cars (Report + video from B’Tselem 4/5/22)
Tweet from Israel lawyer Gaby Lasky 4/5/22: “Defense Minister Gantz’s decision to plug the illegal outposts into electricity creates a de facto annexation and trains and launders tens of thousands of crimes. This is a reward for land grab and theft and a blatant breach of all coalition agreements. If anyone thinks there will be no consequences, they are wrong and they should think again” [translated from Hebrew original]
To exact ‘revenge,’ Israeli settlers wreaked havoc in my village (+972 Magazine 4/4/22)
Israeli settlers stone vehicles near Nablus-district town (WAFA 4/4/22)
Israeli settlers attack Palestinian homes in Hebron (The New Arab 4/3/22)
Israel’s Top Court Rejects Petition Calling to Halt Fundraising for West Bank Outposts (Haaretz 4/3/22)
Settlers With Firebombs Descend on a Palestinian Village at Night, Torching Cars (Haaretz 4/1/22) [“Following the terror attack in Hadera, Mohammed Abad, a resident of the West Bank village of Jalud, refused to go to sleep, fearing settlers’ revenge. He went up to his roof when he heard noises, to find his yard in flames”]
Palestine cars vandalised with smashed windows, graffiti by Israel settlers (Middle East Monitor 3/31/22)
Jerusalem
Mapping Out the Rapid Judaization of East Jerusalem [summarizing developments/state of play re: Atarot, Beit Safafa, Sheikh Jarrah, Silwan, Old City, Jabal Mukkaber and Isawiyah, Walaja (Haaretz 4/6/22)
The Patriarchate of Jerusalem on the illegal seizure of the Little Petra Hotel (Orthodox Times 4/4/22)
Other West Bank Settlement News
14 Years Late, Israel Overcomes Leftist Resistance to Sewage Treatment Plant for Samaria Settlement (Jewish Press 4/1/22)
Further Reading
Meron Rapoport: The Green Line is dead. What comes next? (+972 Magazine 4/1/22)