In largest land grab since Oslo, Israel confiscates 6,000 acres in West Bank

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the confiscation of 24,000 dunums (5930.5 acres) of the occupied West Bank, classifying them as state lands, the Palestinian Information Centre reported.

Israel’s Channel 14 said this announcement is a dramatic step, expected to affect regional planning and change the face of the region.

“At the right time, today we completed a complex process to announce 24,000 dunums of new state lands in the West Bank,” Smotrich said.

“This process creates a settlement sequence, builds land reserves for Israel to develop settlements, infrastructure and roads, and guarantees that we will continue to strengthen the settlements, and we are here to stay,” he added.

In a tweet, Smotrich wrote: “More than 23,000 dunams of land for the benefit of the settlement in Yosh. We determine facts on the ground and thwart the establishment of a Palestinian state!”

According to Channel 14, the illegal settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, east of occupied Jerusalem, would be expanded by approximately 2,600 dunums (642 acres) to the south to create a settlement chain linked to the illegal settlement of Kedar.

Other illegal settlements such as Migdal Oz and Susya in the southern West Bank and Yafit in the Jordan Valley will also be expanded.

This declaration constitutes nearly half of the land declared “state land” since 1993, when the Oslo Accords were signed.

In a landmark advisory opinion in July, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem as “illegal” and called for settlements to be dismantled and reparations to be paid to Palestinians.

READ: Smotrich seeks to close Israel office responsible for West Bank, a prelude to annexation