The Israeli occupation army started on Wednesday the process of confiscating 1,480 dunams of land belonging to Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The move was made as US President Joe Biden touched down in the occupation state on his first trip to the Middle East since taking office. According to Palestinian activists, the land targeted by the Israeli occupation belongs to four Palestinian villages, Jaloud, Qaryut, Turmusaya and Al-Mughayer. All of them are located between Ramallah and Nablus. Palestinian anti-settlement activist Ghassan Daghlas said that the land was seized after appeals from the owners, who grow olives and almonds there, were rejected. The area was declared to be a security zone by the army to secure adjacent Israeli settlements and outposts. All of Israel’s settlements and settlement outposts are illegal under international law. According to Daghlas, the land is located around the Jewish settlement of Shilo. He pointed out that this is the largest land grab intended to expand the settlements and outposts that surround the villages, and noted that the confiscation was under a military order issued on 14 April which was not disclosed until after the deadline for objections had passed. The Israeli occupation authorities are planning to annex the land to increase the size of the illegal Amichai settlement. Source URL |
