UPDATE - Israel seizes 8 square kilometers of land in West Bank's Jordan Valley region

UPDATES WITH PALESTINIAN PRESIDENCY STATEMENT, MINOR EDITS

By Abdelraouf Arnaout and Qais Abu Samra

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israel seized 8 square kilometers (about 3 square miles) of land in the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank for the establishment of hundreds of settlement units, an Israeli media outlet reported on Friday.

“8,000 dunums (8 square kilometers) in the Jordan Valley have been allocated as Israeli lands for the construction of hundreds of residential units, in addition to an area designated for industry, commerce, and employment,” the Israel Broadcasting Authority stated.

It explained: “Planning the residential units in the area announced as state lands currently may take about a year, and it will require political-level approval.”

The authority quoted Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who signed the confiscation decision, as saying: “Issuing declarations on state lands is an important and strategic matter.”

He added: “This declaration will allow the continuation of building and strengthening the Jordan Valley. At a time when there are those who seek to undermine our rights in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) and the country in general, we are strengthening settlements through serious and strategic work throughout the country.”

The Palestinian presidency condemned the Israeli government's decision to seize the land in the Jordan Valley.

In a statement cited by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for the Palestinian presidency, said: “The timing of this decision coinciding with the arrival of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the region possesses a challenge to the US administration and to the international community, which condemn settlement activity day and night.”

“All settlements are illegal, and there will be no security or stability without the establishment of a Palestinian state free of settlements and settlers,” Abu Rudeineh added.

He called on Washington to “demonstrate its commitment to international legitimacy and international law, and to compel the occupying state (Israel) to stop the genocide war it is waging against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and to stop its crimes and settlements, otherwise there will be more violence and explosion.”

The spokesman said that the Israeli decision to seize the Palestinian land “comes as part of the Israeli government’s efforts to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

Palestinian and Israeli human rights organizations have pointed to a noticeable increase in settlement activity in the West Bank since the formation of Benjamin Netanyahu's government at the end of 2022.

According to Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission estimates, more than 720,000 Israelis reside in illegal settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

The international community agrees that settlements are “illegal” and constitute an obstacle to the implementation of the “two-state solution,” which calls for the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala