Israeli authorities have reportedly authorised building illegal settlements on private Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank, weeks after 34 new settlements were approved there, amid the Israeli government’s plan to accelerate its de facto annexation of the territory .
At least eight of those settlements will be established on privately-owned land, including an area near the northern town of Duma, a map obtained by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz showed, where 11 Palestinian families were forcibly expelled from, following violent attacks by settlers living in the illegal outpost of Giborei David, in February this year.
Nine of the settlements will be established in the Samaria Regional Council, in the northern West Bank, already home to 35 Israeli settlements . Five of those settlements will be built within the vicinity of several Palestinian villages, in an area with no Israeli presence. This would require a heavy military presence, as these settlements can "only be accessed" via the Palestinian villages.
Settlements and outposts are illegal under international law. The Israeli government's push for more settlements across the West Bank has prompted condemnation from the likes of Canada, France, the UK, and a number of other European nations.
Fifteen other settlements will be built on "state land", which is controlled and occupied by the Israeli government despite its Palestinian identity.
Meanwhile, three other Israeli settlements will be established in "firing zones" from which Palestinians have been expelled over time by the Israeli military. A firing zone in the West Bank entails areas in Area C used by the Israeli army for military training purposes, and are off-limits to civilians.
Earlier this month, the Israeli cabinet approved at least 34 new settlements in the Palestinian territory, amid the government’s efforts to accelerate the de facto annexation of the West Bank, with months left before elections in October.
Since Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in 2022, his right-wing to far-right government has approved at least 102 settlements - including the 34 in April.
A number of Netanyahu’s ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defence Minister Israel Katz , have increasingly advocated for the increased development of Jewish settlements on Palestinian land, including the Gaza Strip, through land expropriation. This refers to practices carried out by the Israeli government in the Palestinian territories to increasingly seize and control land.
The 34 settlements will include 20 new communities, nine existing outposts set to be legalised, the expansion of two existing settlements, and three more that will split off from existing ones, Haaretz said.
Settlement expansion in the occupied territory has triggered the mass displacement of Palestinian families . As of March this year, at least 36,000 people have been forced to leave their homes, OCHA said, amid violence from both Jewish settlers and the Israeli military.
The decision to increase the number of settlements in the West Bank also undermines the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and is set out to diminish hopes for a Palestinian state.