RAMALLAH: The Palestinian Anti-Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission declared today that the Israeli occupation government has ordered the seizure of 8,000 dunums of land in the Jordan Valley, east of the occupied West Bank.
Muayyad Shaban, the head of the commission, stated that with the approval of the land confiscation order by hard-right Israeli Minister of Finance, Bezalel Smotrich, the occupation government continues its plan to seize control of Palestinian lands under various pretexts, including declaring state lands for the benefit of colonial settlements.
Shaban explained that the year 2024 witnessed the largest land seizure operation by the Israeli occupation by declaring Palestinian lands as state lands, with a total of 10,640 dunums confiscated in two separate announcements so far this year. The first announcement was made a month ago, targeting the lands of Al-Eizariya and Abu Dis, east of occupied Jerusalem, seizing 2,640 dunams of land.
The second announcement, which was made today, targ
ets the lands of the Jordan Valley, totaling 8,000 dunams, for the expansion of the Israeli settlement of Yafit built on the lands of the Palestinian village of Fasayil in Jericho Governorate, in addition to another 500 dunams seized at the end of 2023 from the lands of the village of Jab’a in Jerusalem Governorate.
Shaban pointed out land seizure announcements aim to create a link between existing settlements, as was the case with the Ma’ale Adumim and Kidar settlements, and the Givat Benjamin and Adam settlements, leading to the isolation and suffocation of Palestinian villages, completely cutting off their geographic contiguity.
He said the latest plan comes in the context of imposing full control over the Jordan Valley, the strategic food reserve for Palestinians, which is targeted by many forced displacement and colonial expansion plans by the Israeli occupation.
Source: Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA