13 oct 2019
The so-called “Civil Administration Office,” the administrative branch of Israel’s illegal occupation of the West Bank, has approved the construction of 251 additional units in illegal colonies in Bethlehem governorate, south of occupied Jerusalem.
Hasan Breijiyya, the head of the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, said the Israeli “Planning and Construction Council,” and the Gush Etzion Regional Council of Settlements, have approved two plans to build 251 units.
He said that 146 units are planned to be built in Gush Etzion Bloc, south of Bethlehem, and 105 in Kfar Eldad, east of the city.
Furthermore, Israeli soldiers confiscated dozens of Dunams of Palestinian lands, in Basin #4, of Nahhalin town, west of Bethlehem, to expand the illegal Elon Shvut colony.
Hasan Breijiyya, the head of the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, said the Israeli “Planning and Construction Council,” and the Gush Etzion Regional Council of Settlements, have approved two plans to build 251 units.
He said that 146 units are planned to be built in Gush Etzion Bloc, south of Bethlehem, and 105 in Kfar Eldad, east of the city.
Furthermore, Israeli soldiers confiscated dozens of Dunams of Palestinian lands, in Basin #4, of Nahhalin town, west of Bethlehem, to expand the illegal Elon Shvut colony.
11 oct 2019
The Israeli Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is set to approve, this coming Sunday, the construction of 182 units for illegal colonialist settlers in the Jordan Valley of the occupied West Bank.
Israeli sources have reported that the decision is part of the Cabinet’s approval, which was made on September 15th, regarding “legalizing,” Mevo’ot Yericho colonialist outpost, which was installed on Palestinian lands without the government’s approval.
This comes after Benjamin Netanyahu declared his decision to enforce Israel’s complete control on the Jordan Valley and all areas north of the Dead Sea, in the occupied West Bank, as part of the so-called “Jordan Valley Annexation Plan.”
All of Israel’s colonies in the occupied West Bank, including those in and around East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law, the Fourth Geneva Conventions, and various United Nations and Security Council resolutions.
Israeli Peace Now Movement said that the decision means that the units in the illegal outpost will be retroactively legalized especially after the cabinet has given the green light for that.
In its statement, Peace Now said: This announcement marks the christening of a sixth official settlement since the Oslo Accords, following declarations for the Havat Gilad outpost (2018), Amichai settlement (2017), Bruchin (2012), Sansana (2012) and Rechelim (2012).
Over a dozen other outposts have been retroactively authorized as “neighborhoods” of existing settlements so that the government could deny officially creating new settlements. For more on the revival of building outposts under the Netanyahu government and efforts to legalize them, click here.
Mevo’ot Yericho lies strategically just 650 meters from the Area A of the northern edge of Jericho, thus blocking potential Palestinian develop. The move comes just days after Prime Minister Netanyahu presented a detailed plan to annex the Jordan Valley, while encircling Palestinian Areas A and B.
This official establishment of another settlement proves yet again that the government is unencumbered by the thought of international backlash or the end to Israeli democracy on its way to annex Area C. The government continues to show blatant disregard for reaching a two-state conflict-ending agreement with the Palestinians.
Instead, it prefers to take new strides in formalizing the acquisition of occupied territory and to control the area’s resources while permanently keeping the Palestinian population confined without full rights in isolated cantons.”
Israeli sources have reported that the decision is part of the Cabinet’s approval, which was made on September 15th, regarding “legalizing,” Mevo’ot Yericho colonialist outpost, which was installed on Palestinian lands without the government’s approval.
This comes after Benjamin Netanyahu declared his decision to enforce Israel’s complete control on the Jordan Valley and all areas north of the Dead Sea, in the occupied West Bank, as part of the so-called “Jordan Valley Annexation Plan.”
All of Israel’s colonies in the occupied West Bank, including those in and around East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law, the Fourth Geneva Conventions, and various United Nations and Security Council resolutions.
Israeli Peace Now Movement said that the decision means that the units in the illegal outpost will be retroactively legalized especially after the cabinet has given the green light for that.
In its statement, Peace Now said: This announcement marks the christening of a sixth official settlement since the Oslo Accords, following declarations for the Havat Gilad outpost (2018), Amichai settlement (2017), Bruchin (2012), Sansana (2012) and Rechelim (2012).
Over a dozen other outposts have been retroactively authorized as “neighborhoods” of existing settlements so that the government could deny officially creating new settlements. For more on the revival of building outposts under the Netanyahu government and efforts to legalize them, click here.
Mevo’ot Yericho lies strategically just 650 meters from the Area A of the northern edge of Jericho, thus blocking potential Palestinian develop. The move comes just days after Prime Minister Netanyahu presented a detailed plan to annex the Jordan Valley, while encircling Palestinian Areas A and B.
This official establishment of another settlement proves yet again that the government is unencumbered by the thought of international backlash or the end to Israeli democracy on its way to annex Area C. The government continues to show blatant disregard for reaching a two-state conflict-ending agreement with the Palestinians.
Instead, it prefers to take new strides in formalizing the acquisition of occupied territory and to control the area’s resources while permanently keeping the Palestinian population confined without full rights in isolated cantons.”
9 oct 2019
The Israeli occupation authority (IOA) intends to turn a vast tract of Palestinian land in the Khan al-Ahmar area between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea into a garbage dump.
The IOA also plans to establish a waste recycling plant in the same area, according to Jerusalem affairs researcher Fakhri Abu Diyab.
Abu Diyab affirmed that the IOA plans to seize 900 of dunums of Palestinian land and expel Palestinian residents from the area in order to establish the dump and the recycling facility.
He warned that such Israeli project would have negative impacts on the environment and the health of the native population in the area.
He pointed out that about 250 to 300 trucks would unload about 3,500 tons of waste every day in the area.
The researcher said he obtained such information from Israeli plans in Area C of the West Bank as well as from environmental institutions and some leftist political figures.
The IOA also plans to establish a waste recycling plant in the same area, according to Jerusalem affairs researcher Fakhri Abu Diyab.
Abu Diyab affirmed that the IOA plans to seize 900 of dunums of Palestinian land and expel Palestinian residents from the area in order to establish the dump and the recycling facility.
He warned that such Israeli project would have negative impacts on the environment and the health of the native population in the area.
He pointed out that about 250 to 300 trucks would unload about 3,500 tons of waste every day in the area.
The researcher said he obtained such information from Israeli plans in Area C of the West Bank as well as from environmental institutions and some leftist political figures.
7 oct 2019
Israeli forces bulldozed around 30 dunams of Palestinian lands, in an area adjacent to the illegal Israeli settlement of Kharsina, to the east of the southern West Bank district of Hebron, as a prelude to the construction of a new settlement outpost, there, said a local activist.
Abd al-Hadi Hantash, an expert in settlements and maps, said Israeli bulldozers razed around 30 dunams of land, then laid base course — a layer of material used for the construction of roads — and removed the electricity poles belonging to the Hebron municipality, cutting off power to several Palestinian residents in the area, as a prelude to build a new settlement outpost there.
Israeli forces paved a road in the said area almost two months ago, in order to connect the new settlement outpost with other nearby settlements located adjacent to Bypass Road 60, built on confiscated Palestinian land.
In related news, extremist Israeli settlers, today, chopped dozens of olive trees, in the village of Burin, to the south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, said local WAFA sources.
The sources said that settlers from Yitzhar, an illegal settlement inhabited by hardline extremist Jews, uprooted about 36 olive trees in the area of “Khillet al-Goul”, an area which belongs to the villagers of Burin.
Meanwhile, students were evicted from Burin High School, after the guard of the aforementioned settlement drew his gun on them.
The school’s principal, Ibraheem Omran, said that the school was evicted after the guard made threats and called Israeli soldiers to the scene.
Attacks on education by Israeli military forces and Israeli settlers, in the Palestinian territories, constitute grave violations of children’s rights to education and development. These attacks are particularly prevalent in the most vulnerable areas of the West Bank – Area C, H2 and Jerusalem.
Settler violence against Palestinians and their property is routine in the West Bank and is rarely prosecuted by Israeli authorities.
Settler violence includes property and mosque arsons, stone-throwing, uprooting of crops and olive trees, attacks on vulnerable homes, among others.
Between 500,000 and 600,000 Israelis live in Jewish-only settlements across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank in violation of international law.
Furthermore, today, the Israeli military halted the construction of a water collection well and detained three Palestinians in Khirbet Samra, in the northern Jordan Valley.
Aref Daraghmeh, a local activist, said that an Israeli military force broke into Khirber Samra, preventing three workers from proceeding with the restoration works of a water collection well, before detaining them.
The valley, which is a fertile strip of land running west along the Jordan River, is home to about 65,000 Palestinians and makes up approximately 30% of the West Bank.
Since 1967, when the Israeli army occupied the West Bank, Israel has transferred at least 11,000 of its Jewish citizens to the Jordan Valley. Some of the settlements in which they live were built almost entirely on private Palestinian land.
The Israel military has also designated about 46 percent of the Jordan Valley as a closed military zone since the beginning of the occupation in June of 1967, and has been utilizing the pretext of military drills to forcefully displace Palestinian families living there, as part of a policy of ethnic cleansing and stifling Palestinian development in the area.
Approximately 6,200 Palestinians live in 38 communities in places earmarked for military use, and have had to obtain permission from Israeli authorities to enter and live in their communities.
In violation of international law, the Israeli military not only temporarily displaces the communities on a regular basis, but also confiscates their farmlands, demolishing their homes and infrastructure, from time to time.
Besides undergoing temporary displacement, the Palestinian families living there face a myriad restrictions on access to resources and services.
Meanwhile, Israel exploits the resources of the area and generates profit by allocating generous tracts of land and water resources for the benefit of settlers.
Israeli politicians have made it clear, on several occasions, that the highly strategic Jordan Valley area would remain under their control, in any eventuality.
Abd al-Hadi Hantash, an expert in settlements and maps, said Israeli bulldozers razed around 30 dunams of land, then laid base course — a layer of material used for the construction of roads — and removed the electricity poles belonging to the Hebron municipality, cutting off power to several Palestinian residents in the area, as a prelude to build a new settlement outpost there.
Israeli forces paved a road in the said area almost two months ago, in order to connect the new settlement outpost with other nearby settlements located adjacent to Bypass Road 60, built on confiscated Palestinian land.
In related news, extremist Israeli settlers, today, chopped dozens of olive trees, in the village of Burin, to the south of the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, said local WAFA sources.
The sources said that settlers from Yitzhar, an illegal settlement inhabited by hardline extremist Jews, uprooted about 36 olive trees in the area of “Khillet al-Goul”, an area which belongs to the villagers of Burin.
Meanwhile, students were evicted from Burin High School, after the guard of the aforementioned settlement drew his gun on them.
The school’s principal, Ibraheem Omran, said that the school was evicted after the guard made threats and called Israeli soldiers to the scene.
Attacks on education by Israeli military forces and Israeli settlers, in the Palestinian territories, constitute grave violations of children’s rights to education and development. These attacks are particularly prevalent in the most vulnerable areas of the West Bank – Area C, H2 and Jerusalem.
Settler violence against Palestinians and their property is routine in the West Bank and is rarely prosecuted by Israeli authorities.
Settler violence includes property and mosque arsons, stone-throwing, uprooting of crops and olive trees, attacks on vulnerable homes, among others.
Between 500,000 and 600,000 Israelis live in Jewish-only settlements across occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank in violation of international law.
Furthermore, today, the Israeli military halted the construction of a water collection well and detained three Palestinians in Khirbet Samra, in the northern Jordan Valley.
Aref Daraghmeh, a local activist, said that an Israeli military force broke into Khirber Samra, preventing three workers from proceeding with the restoration works of a water collection well, before detaining them.
The valley, which is a fertile strip of land running west along the Jordan River, is home to about 65,000 Palestinians and makes up approximately 30% of the West Bank.
Since 1967, when the Israeli army occupied the West Bank, Israel has transferred at least 11,000 of its Jewish citizens to the Jordan Valley. Some of the settlements in which they live were built almost entirely on private Palestinian land.
The Israel military has also designated about 46 percent of the Jordan Valley as a closed military zone since the beginning of the occupation in June of 1967, and has been utilizing the pretext of military drills to forcefully displace Palestinian families living there, as part of a policy of ethnic cleansing and stifling Palestinian development in the area.
Approximately 6,200 Palestinians live in 38 communities in places earmarked for military use, and have had to obtain permission from Israeli authorities to enter and live in their communities.
In violation of international law, the Israeli military not only temporarily displaces the communities on a regular basis, but also confiscates their farmlands, demolishing their homes and infrastructure, from time to time.
Besides undergoing temporary displacement, the Palestinian families living there face a myriad restrictions on access to resources and services.
Meanwhile, Israel exploits the resources of the area and generates profit by allocating generous tracts of land and water resources for the benefit of settlers.
Israeli politicians have made it clear, on several occasions, that the highly strategic Jordan Valley area would remain under their control, in any eventuality.
1 oct 2019
Hebrew media sources announced today that the Israeli occupation forces have completed 43 out of the 60 kilometer wall along the border with the Gaza Strip, equivalent to 70% of the total project which was described as the largest engineering projects.
The wall is meant to “eliminate the tunnels” of the Palestinian resistance.
According to Channel 2, 1,400 workers are working 24 hours a day, six days a week, day and night, to complete the project as soon as possible.
The wall starts from the southern Gaza Strip, near the triangle between Israel-Egypt and Gaza, and crosses the border line to the sea shore in Zikim in the south.
The wall is meant to “eliminate the tunnels” of the Palestinian resistance.
According to Channel 2, 1,400 workers are working 24 hours a day, six days a week, day and night, to complete the project as soon as possible.
The wall starts from the southern Gaza Strip, near the triangle between Israel-Egypt and Gaza, and crosses the border line to the sea shore in Zikim in the south.
30 sept 2019
By: Madeeha Araj/ NBPRS/
The southern areas of Hebron are subjected to extensive settlement acts as the Israeli Occupation Authorities announced the seizure of about populated 1500 dunums located within the borders of the Dura Municipality, south of Hebron, planted with olive trees and almonds.
In 1987, a State Document was signed against the basin n. 8 of Dura land by Israeli military order, and on July 31st this year, the Israeli Authorities completed the inspection and amendment of the borders, knowing that part of these lands located in areas B, and owners have an Ottoman Tabu on that.
The old-new recently amended military order provides for the seizure of this lands adjacent to Beer-Sab’a St. which connects the eastern Dura countryside and the southern town of Dhahriya that belonging to Amr, Abu Sharar, Al-Khatib, Shaheen, Dodeen, Hreibat and others.
In Hebron, settlers set up 6 new outposts on Palestinian land in the area between the 2017-2019 years, hundreds of meters away from major settlements built since previous years.
Those outposts were erected on the eastern, western and southern sides of the Governorate, particularly on the lands of Dura, Bani Na’im, Yatta, As-Samu, Dahreiah and Sa’ir.
The Occupation Authorities have been practicing for 25 years since the massacre committed by Baruch Goldstein, the policy of harassing the Palestinians to force them leave their city under the security pretexts, and to replace them with settlers.
In Nablus, a new settlement plan was disclosed to seize more land in Naqora, Sebastia, and Burqa, north of Nablus, in order to expand the settlement of Shafi Shomron through diverting agricultural land adjacent to the settlement from basin n 12 to settlement, knowing that settlement outpost around Nablus witness an expansion of their structural plans at the expense of the lands of the citizens, as is the case with the lands surrounding the settlements of Yitzhar and Bracha, south of Nablus.
In Jerusalem, the alleged “temple organizations” are preparing to carry out a series of Judaizing programs and large-scale invasions of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, on the occasion of the festive season, and incite further breaking into to impose a de facto position there.
Those organizations have begun to intensify their calls and disseminate them via media and social networking sites affiliated to them, stressing the full coordination with the occupation police to facilitate such acts.
In the wild-Sawahri, Jerusalem, the Israeli occupation authorities demolished the sit-in-strike tent after the Israeli Army declared it a closed military area, and prevented residents from reaching it in order to seize these lands. In spite the fact that the lands threatened by confiscation are far away from the Palestinian communities, residents and owners say that they will rebuild the tent and continue their sit-in-strike.
During her speech before the Human Rights Council, Head of Contacts and Media at the Marsad Organization, Sillin Yashar, as well as many other European and international NGOs, including the Euro-Mediterranean Observatory expressed their concern about the large-scale demolition acts in the West Bank, particularly in the occupied Jerusalem, describing them as “terrifying”’, as the Israeli occupation authorities destroyed more than 59 homes in East Jerusalem during the first half of 2019, and 215 demolitions were counted in 2018, which led to the displacement of thousands of Palestinians in clear violation of International Law and Humanitarian International Law.
Worth mentioning that these organization have demanded the international community to conduct the necessary investigations to put an end to the occupation and it violations.
The southern areas of Hebron are subjected to extensive settlement acts as the Israeli Occupation Authorities announced the seizure of about populated 1500 dunums located within the borders of the Dura Municipality, south of Hebron, planted with olive trees and almonds.
In 1987, a State Document was signed against the basin n. 8 of Dura land by Israeli military order, and on July 31st this year, the Israeli Authorities completed the inspection and amendment of the borders, knowing that part of these lands located in areas B, and owners have an Ottoman Tabu on that.
The old-new recently amended military order provides for the seizure of this lands adjacent to Beer-Sab’a St. which connects the eastern Dura countryside and the southern town of Dhahriya that belonging to Amr, Abu Sharar, Al-Khatib, Shaheen, Dodeen, Hreibat and others.
In Hebron, settlers set up 6 new outposts on Palestinian land in the area between the 2017-2019 years, hundreds of meters away from major settlements built since previous years.
Those outposts were erected on the eastern, western and southern sides of the Governorate, particularly on the lands of Dura, Bani Na’im, Yatta, As-Samu, Dahreiah and Sa’ir.
The Occupation Authorities have been practicing for 25 years since the massacre committed by Baruch Goldstein, the policy of harassing the Palestinians to force them leave their city under the security pretexts, and to replace them with settlers.
In Nablus, a new settlement plan was disclosed to seize more land in Naqora, Sebastia, and Burqa, north of Nablus, in order to expand the settlement of Shafi Shomron through diverting agricultural land adjacent to the settlement from basin n 12 to settlement, knowing that settlement outpost around Nablus witness an expansion of their structural plans at the expense of the lands of the citizens, as is the case with the lands surrounding the settlements of Yitzhar and Bracha, south of Nablus.
In Jerusalem, the alleged “temple organizations” are preparing to carry out a series of Judaizing programs and large-scale invasions of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, on the occasion of the festive season, and incite further breaking into to impose a de facto position there.
Those organizations have begun to intensify their calls and disseminate them via media and social networking sites affiliated to them, stressing the full coordination with the occupation police to facilitate such acts.
In the wild-Sawahri, Jerusalem, the Israeli occupation authorities demolished the sit-in-strike tent after the Israeli Army declared it a closed military area, and prevented residents from reaching it in order to seize these lands. In spite the fact that the lands threatened by confiscation are far away from the Palestinian communities, residents and owners say that they will rebuild the tent and continue their sit-in-strike.
During her speech before the Human Rights Council, Head of Contacts and Media at the Marsad Organization, Sillin Yashar, as well as many other European and international NGOs, including the Euro-Mediterranean Observatory expressed their concern about the large-scale demolition acts in the West Bank, particularly in the occupied Jerusalem, describing them as “terrifying”’, as the Israeli occupation authorities destroyed more than 59 homes in East Jerusalem during the first half of 2019, and 215 demolitions were counted in 2018, which led to the displacement of thousands of Palestinians in clear violation of International Law and Humanitarian International Law.
Worth mentioning that these organization have demanded the international community to conduct the necessary investigations to put an end to the occupation and it violations.