Israel to apply environmental laws to the West Bank

Member of Israel’s Knesset for the Yemina party Idit Silman, in Jerusalem, on June 29, 2022 [AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images]

Israeli occupation authorities are planning to apply environmental laws to the occupied Palestinian West Bank, Haaretz’s Hebrew website revealed yesterday.

According to the site, Environmental Protection Minister Idit Silman and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich will propose a bill on the treatment of the problem of burning waste in 33 sites in the occupied West Bank.

The proposal, which requires the allocation of 20 million shekels ($5.4 million) for the evacuation of waste, is to be presented to the Knesset soon.

Haaretz said the proposal includes building facilities for treating waste and recycling it in order to generate electricity.

The law would make maintaining a clean environment a military imperative with fines and penalties imposed on those violating the directives.

READ: Palestine slams Israel ‘apartheid law’ for West Bank settlers

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