In the run-up to the parliamentary elections in the State of occupation, the Israeli right-wing Government with every single Israeli Minister representing his party, seeks to prove his loyalty to his supporters, and thus the Israeli Government accelerated to show the Israeli public that their demands are audible. Moreover the Israeli settlers living in the Israeli Illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank are the most influent on the Israeli political scene, the Government sought to satisfy them in various ways, even at the expense of the Palestinians and their land by issuing and approving new settlement projects in the illegal Israeli settlements on the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
From the beginning of February 2015, the Israeli violations against Palestinians and their lands and properties in the Occupied West Bank including east Jerusalem and the Gaza strip, did not stop. Where the Israeli Occupation Army and the Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians wherever they were. The Israeli Army stormed and searched several Palestinian houses, questioned and arrested Palestinians.
Also the month of February witnessed, clashes erupted between Palestinians and the Israeli Occupation Army, where the latter used live and rubber bullets and teargas grenades, causing the injury of a number of Palestinians.
The storming and arresting operations carried out by the Israeli Army against Palestinian villages and towns in the Occupied Territory, increased in quantity and quality where during February 2015, the Israeli Occupation Army issued dozens of orders to demolish Palestinian houses and structures and to confiscate Palestinian private land, in additional to the demolition operations that took place. See the table below:
|
Number of attacks |
Type of violation |
# |
|
55.3 dunums |
(Land confiscated (Dunums |
1 |
|
870 dunums |
(Land threatened of Confiscation (Dunums |
2 |
|
980 trees |
Uprooted/destroyed/ trees |
3 |
|
3 houses |
Demolished Houses |
4 |
|
7 structures |
Demolished Structures |
5 |
|
52 orders |
Orders to demolish houses and structures |
6 |
|
55 attacks |
Israeli settlers attacks |
7 |
|
Settlement Monitoring Department- ARIJ |
||
Confiscated & Threatened Palestinian Lands:
The Israeli Civil Administration issued four military orders to confiscate 55.3 dunums of Palestinian land. The higher number of dunums were confiscated in Hebron Governorate, where the Israeli Occupation Army issued orders to confiscate a total of 38 dunums of lands, under the claim of “State land”.
In Tubas Governorate, the Israeli Authorities issued an order to confiscate 9 dunums of Palestinian land. And in Bethlehem Governorate, the Israeli Authorities seized 8.3 dunums of Palestinian land for the benefit of the Israeli settlement project in the oPt.
Also, the Israeli bulldozers razed about 870 dunums of Palestinian-owned lands. Where the Israeli Army leveled Palestinian land or set up fence around others, which threatened to pave the way for settlement expansion adjacent to these lands, especially in Masfer Yatta south of Hebron Governorate in the southern parts of the West Bank where the aforementioned community witnessed prominent colonial Targeting by the Occupation Authorities during the last year until the date of righting this report while the Israeli bulldozers razed about 800 dunums of Palestinian land.
About 1,000 Trees Destroyed & Uprooted …. 2,000 Trees under the Threat
The Israeli settlers escorted by the Israeli Occupation Army uprooted and cut 980 trees from several areas in the Palestinian Governorates in the West Bank. In Hebron Governorate about 680 trees were destroyed, cut and torched. while in Tubas Governorate, about 300 trees were uprooted and destroyed.
The crime against the trees did not stop here, however, in February 2015, the Israeli Authorities issued a military orders to cut and remove about 2,000 trees from 66 dunums of land in Palestinian village of Haris in Salfit Governorate in the northern parts of the West Bank.
Forced Displacement : Demolished Palestinian Houses and Structures
During February 2015, the Israeli bulldozers demolished three Palestinian houses and 7 structures (animal sheds, agricultural barracks, commercial structures, etc.). Two houses were demolished in Jerusalem Governorate and one house in Hebron Governorate. For the structures, one were demolished in Jerusalem governorate, two structures in Hebron Governorate and 4 others in Nablus Governorate, which leaves dozens of Palestinian families without houses and sustenance. It’s worth to mention that the Israeli Authorities claimed that the demolished houses and structures, were “illegal” and build without permeations from the Israeli related Authorities.
52 Demolition Orders in the Opt
The Israeli targeting for the Palestinians properties and their house has no limits, where the Israeli Authorities issued, orders to stop the construction and demolish Palestinian houses and structures, under the pretext of “building without permits”.
In February 2015, the Israeli Authorities issued 52 military orders to demolish houses and structures in several Palestinian Governorates. The highest number of orders targeted Hebron Governorate with 30 military orders, while 18 orders were issued in Jerusalem Governorate and 3 orders in Ramallah Governorate. See chart 1 below:
Israeli Settlers Attacks
During the month of February, the Israeli settlers attacks against Palestinians, their properties and the Holy sites continued, where the settlers set fire a mosque and a church, in additional to physically attacks Palestinian, stormed land and cut trees.
In February 2015, the Applied Research Institute Jerusalem- (ARIJ), documented 55 attacks carried out by the Israeli settlers living in the Israeli Illegal settlements in the Occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
In Jerusalem Governorate, the Israeli settlers carried out 24 attacks that were, mostly in through storming the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Furthermore , the what is so-called "Price Tags" settlers groups (organized extremist group from Israeli settlers , systematically, attacks the Palestinian residents and their properties in all parts of the Palestinian Territory) burned a church in the city of Jerusalem , while 14 settlers attacks reported in Hebron Governorate and 8 others in Nablus Governorate. See chart 2 below:
As a matter of fact, the type of the attacks carried out by the herds of the Israeli settlers varied between uprooting and destroying trees, razing lands, physically assaulting Palestinian civilians, storming devastating and burning Holy sites, expanding existing outposts and settlements or establishing a new ones.
For example, the Israeli settlers escorted by the Israeli Occupation Army set up 5 mobile houses on Jabal As-Sobeh area in Jalud village in Nablus governorate. It’s worth to mention that during February 2015, most of the Israeli settlers attacks was against Holy sites”, where 21 attacks were reported. See chart 3 below:
During the month of February, the Israeli settlers set fire “Al-Huda mosque” in Al-Jab’a village, southwest of Bethlehem governorate, where the fire destroyed all the contents of the mosque. The Israeli settlers also, wrote anti-Palestinian slogans on the wall of the mosque.
Colonial Plans to build 64,000 New Settlement Housing Units in the oPt
During February 2015, the Israeli Authorities escalated their plans to expand the illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian Territory , a step that can be easily associated with the Israeli Parliamentary elections that would take place in March 17, 2015.
During the month of February, what is so-called by the Israeli Ministry of Housing & Constructin headed by the extremist settler, Minister Uri Ariel, revealed on a new plans to build about 64,000 new settlement housing units in 29 West Bank settlements , of which + 48,000 to be built in the West Bank settlements , while +15,000 to be built in the illegal settlements in the occupied Eastern part of the city of Jerusalem.
According to the reports, the settlement settler, Uri Ariel, supposed to be handed the plans for the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before his pre-planned controversial visit to the United States of America (March 2- March 4- 2015).
Obviously, the new proposed plan to build about 64,000 new settlement housing units, would lead to a catastrophic consequences over the geological status in the Palestinian Territory that directly affect the prospect of establishing a sovereign, sustainable Palestinian State in any future deal between the Palestinian and Israelis.
New Neighborhood in Bitar Ilit Settlement
The “Settlement Monitoring Department at the Applied Research Institute Jerusalem- (ARIJ) spotted a new Israeli plan to build a new colonial neighborhood on land of Wadi Fukin village in Bethlehem Governorate.
The new colonial neighborhood will be a part of the illegal Israeli settlement of “Bitar Illit”, which was built on Palestinian confiscated lands from the villages of Nahalin, Husan and Wadi Fukin in the year 1985 west of Bethlehem Governorate.
According to the new plan, the new neighborhood would named “Bitar Illit C” and include the construction of 218 units in five building. This plan seeks to link the aforementioned settlement with “Tzur Hadasa settlement, which located west of the “Green line”.
3,700 Dunums for the Settlement Project in the oPt
The Israeli formal authorities insist on supporting and inflating the settlement project in the oPt, where the Israeli Civil Administration allocated 3,700 dunums of Palestinian land to the expansion of the Israeli illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank.
For that, on the 9th of February 2015, the Israeli daily newspaper ‘Haaretz’ revealed in a report that the Israeli Civil Administration prepared major expansions of the settlements of; Kedumim, Vered Yericho (cooperative and agriculture settlement), Neveh Tzuf (Hallamish) and Emanuel. Israel escalated its expropriation campaign especially for the pretext of declaring “state land” with deliberate concentration on the Palestinian-owned lands located nearby the illegal settlements.
+400,000 dunums Expropriated in the Sothern parts of the Eastern Segregation Zone
Furthermore, the Israeli Civil Administration issued a military order hold number and name “Judea and Samaria” (No. 1651) (5770-2009) announcement about closed area S/1/99 (amendment border No. 6) (Firing zone 912). The order extending the expropriation of 410,672 dunums of lands, located from the east of Ma’ale Adumim settlement, to the southeast of Hebron governorate, as “closed military zone”. It’s worth pointed that on the 5th of May 1999, the Israeli Authorities issued the military order No. S/1/99 (5785-1999) which targeted the same aforementioned areas (410,884 dunums, including the 212 dunums) and declared it “Closed military area”, because the 212 dunums of land was removed from the closed area to be used by the Israeli settlement of “Ma’ale Adumim” for the expansion the border of the settlement.
It’s same like the Israeli leaders did not paying attention to their relations with the International community, where on the 6th of February 2015, the Israeli Prime Minster “Benjamin Netanyahu” issued his order to demolish all the mobile homes and structures owned by the Palestinian Bedouins living in several areas in the West Bank, despite of the fact that most of these homes funded by the European Union (EU ) as a kind of humanitarian assistance to the Bedouin, where they lives in an inhuman conditions and suffered from the Israeli Authorities practices against them.
In Hebron city, the Israeli Occupation Authorities inaugurate an “Israeli information center” near the Ibrahimi Mosque in the old city of Hebron, for the aim of helping the Israeli Authorities to change the facts on Hebron city.
It’s worth to mention that the city of Hebron constitute a strategic target for Israel, where the Israeli Authorities including the Israeli Army seeking to capture significant sites in the city for ideological , geopolitical purposes.
New Colonial Plans in East Jerusalem
Jerusalem Governorate, the heart of the Palestinian – Israelis conflict, had witnessed an upward trend in term of settlement projects, where the so-called “Land of Israeli Authority’ issued plans to construct 6 Israel hotels on the land of Jabal Al Mukabbir town in east Jerusalem, near Al Qasr Hill (The High Commissioner Palace – the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization HQ (UNTSC)). The plans included the construction of 1330 hotel rooms on 75 dunums of land, in additional to the construction of commercial buildings, car parking, etc. In order to implement this plan, the Israeli Authorities published tenders to construct 580 hotel rooms as a first stage in the implementation of the project.
On the other hand, and during the month of February 2015, the Israeli Municipality of Jerusalem approved the establishment of a new “landfill for the solid waste” on 546 dunums of lands located between Al-Issawiya and ‘Anata towns and Shu’fat refugee camp. It’s worth to point that there are several Palestinian families lives in the aforementioned areas, where the landfill will build.
The series of Judaization the Holy city continued, where also, the Israeli Municipality of Jerusalem announced that it will build 7 public swimming pools in a number of the Israeli settlements in the occupied east Jerusalem; such as east Talpiot, Pisgat Ze’ev and Ramot. The average price for each pool is over NIS 30 million. According to the Israeli resources, this project will improve the quality of the live for the Israeli settlers who lives in the Israeli settlement in Jerusalem city.
Finally with each new settlement project get the approval or start to be implemented, the possibility to move forward to reach a just and durable solution to the Israeli –Palestinian conflict on the basis of the two- state solution, fading slowly.
Without doubt The procedures, plans and measures carried out by the Israeli Occupation Authorities aims to change the geopolitical and demographic situations on the ground in favor of the Israeli illegal settlements on the occupied Palestinian Territory.
Prepared by:
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem
