«Israel» to Legalize 3,500 Units on Palestinian Lands
Local Editor
The "Israeli" entity had established nearly 3,500 structures on privately-owned Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank, seeking to legalize them under a new law.
According to data released by the "Israeli" entity's so-called "civil administration", 3,455 settlement units and buildings were built in three categories of private land in the West Bank, which are considered illegal under both "Israeli" and international law, "Israeli" daily Haaretz reported on Wednesday.
The first category includes 1,285 structures constructed on "clearly private land" that has never been considered as part of the "Israeli" entity.
Meanwhile, 543 structures in the first category had been built on formally-registered land belonging to Palestinian owners, referred to as "regularized private land" by the civil administration.
The other structures were found to be established in privately-owned lands after aerial photos revealed that the lands have been cultivated by Palestinians for years. Under Ottoman-era laws which are still applicable in the West Bank, such lands belong to the Palestinians who were cultivating them.
The second category includes 1,048 "Israeli" buildings "built on private land that had earlier been erroneously designated" "Israeli" land.
The third category covers 1,122 buildings constructed in the occupied West Bank more than 20 years ago "when planning laws were barely enforced in the West Bank."
Under the entity's controversial outpost Regularization law passed earlier this year, all of the mentioned structures could be retroactively legalized.
The law stipulates that the entity will formally recognize any settlements built in the occupied West Bank "in good faith" -- without knowledge that its land was privately owned by Palestinians -if the settler provides minimal proof of the regime's support for its construction as well as some form of compensation to the Palestinian landowners.
Tel Aviv claims that the expropriation of Palestinian-owned land is in the interest of Palestinians, as they can receive financial compensation for it.
NGOs had warned that the law is in violation of the international law.
"Israeli" group ACRI denounced the legislation as "an act of illegal annexation," arguing that the law was "a clear act of applying sovereignty" to "Israeli" settlements in the West Bank, as the regime continues to rule Palestinians with military law.
Rights groups said the law denies Palestinians the rights to their lands and it facilitates "Israeli" land grabs in Palestinian territory.
In recent months, "Israeli" authorities had made bold moves to consolidate control over the occupied East al-Quds [Jerusalem], which is internationally considered as the capital of any future Palestinian state.
In an attempt to prevent any possible divisions of East al-Quds, the Knesset passed a preliminary reading of a bill last month which says any changes to the entity's Basic Law on al-Quds requires the approval of 80 of the 120 Knesset members, instead of the regular majority vote.
On Tuesday, UN Security Council Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Miroslav Jenea warned that the bill "could further cement ‘Israeli' control over occupied East Jerusalem [al-Quds] and would limit the ability of both sides to reach a negotiated solution that is in line with UN resolutions and prior agreements."
The UN official also warned that the measure could "spark violence" in the region.
The "Israeli" entity occupied the entire West Bank, including East al-Quds, during full-frontal military operations in 1967. It later annexed the territories. Neither move has ever been recognized by the international community.
Upon annexation, it began propping up the settlements, deemed as illegal by the international community due to their construction on occupied territory.
More than 600,000 "Israeli" settlers now live in the settlements.
The entity's settlement activities had the steadfast support of the United States, which keeps vetoing United Nations resolutions in their condemnation.
Last December, however, the UN Security Council declared all such settlements illegal after the then US president, Barack Obama, decided not to veto the relevant resolution in a surprise move.
"Israeli" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose right-wing coalition cabinet relies heavily on the support of heavy-weight settlement advocates, has, though, ignored the resolution and even stepped up the construction activities thanks to Washington's silence under Obama's successor, Donald Trump.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
