The Israeli government has approved a proposal to register large areas of the West Bank as “state property” for the first time since Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territory began in 1967.
The Israeli public broadcaster Kan said on Sunday that the proposal was submitted by far-right Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich, Minister of Justice Yariv Levin and Minister of Defence Israel Katz.
“We are continuing the settlement revolution to control all our lands,” Smotrich said.
Registration of land establishes permanent ownership, but most Palestinian land is not formally registered, as it is a long, complicated process, which Israel had stopped in 1967. International law states that an occupying power cannot confiscate or settle land in occupied territories.
The Palestinian presidency slammed the Israeli government’s decision, calling it a “serious escalation” that effectively nullifies signed agreements and clearly contradicts United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
Katz described the move as an “essential security and governance measure designed to ensure control, enforcement and full freedom of action for the State of Israel in the area”, The Jerusalem Post newspaper reported.
Last week, Israel’s security cabinet approved measures promoted by Smotrich and Katz that further facilitate the unlawful seizure of Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank.
‘Null and void decision’
The Palestinian group Hamas condemned Israel’s decision, calling it an attempt “to steal and Judaise lands in the occupied West Bank by registering them as so-called ‘state lands’”.
The group, which led the October 2023 attacks on Israel and fought against Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, called the approval “a null and void decision issued by an illegitimate occupying power”.
“It is an attempt to forcibly impose settlement and Judaisation on the ground, in flagrant violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions,” it added.
International condemnation
Jordan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned Israel’s decision “in the strongest terms”, describing it as a “flagrant violation of international law”.
The ministry’s spokesperson, Fuad al-Majali, “affirmed the Kingdom’s absolute rejection and strong condemnation of any Israeli decisions and attempts to impose sovereignty and Israeli laws on the occupied West Bank,” the statement said.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also denounced Israel’s move, saying it considered it “an extension of its illegal plans to deprive the Palestinian people of their rights”.
In a statement, Qatar stressed the need for international solidarity to pressure Israel to halt the plan “to avoid its serious repercussions”, and reiterated its “firm and unwavering stance in supporting the Palestinian cause and the steadfastness of the fraternal Palestinian people, based on international legitimacy resolutions and the two-state solution”.
Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that such actions constitute a “flagrant violation” of international law and international humanitarian law, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention, as well as relevant UNSC resolutions, notably Resolution 2334 of 2016.