Under cover of war, extremists are seizing Palestinian land — and they hope to make it permanent

In the Palestinian village of Badir, where ancient terraces are irrigated by natural springs, life continues as it has for centuries.

Part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Badir is famous for its olive groves and vineyards. But now it has become the latest flashpoint for settlement in the occupied West Bank.

Israel has approved the establishment of a new Jewish settlement here, expropriated private land to build new settler housing, and even established new outposts without Israeli authorization.

“They are stealing our land to realize their dreams in the midst of our disaster,” said Ghassan Olyan, whose property was among those confiscated.

UNESCO said it was concerned about settler plans around Badir, but the village was by no means an isolated example. Despite Israel’s disagreement, all settlements are considered illegal under international law.

“They don’t care about international law, local law, or even God’s law,” Mr. Orion said.

Last week, Israel’s domestic intelligence chief Ronan Barr wrote to ministers warning that Jewish extremists in the West Bank were committing “terror” against Palestinians and causing “unspeakable damage” to the country.

Settlement growth in the occupied West Bank has accelerated since the Gaza war began.

Extremists in the Israeli government boast that the changes will prevent the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

There are also fears that they will seek to prolong the war in Gaza to achieve their goals.

Yonatan Mizrahi of Peace Now, an Israeli group that monitors settlement growth, said Jewish extremists in the West Bank are exacerbating an already tense and volatile situation and making ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict more difficult than ever It’s never been more difficult.

He believes the “anger and fear” that emerged in Israeli society after the Oct. 7 attack that killed 1,200 people has prompted settlers to seize more land while fewer and fewer people question them.

one June survey A Pew Research Center survey showed that 40% of Israelis believe settlements make the country safer, up from 27% in 2013. The proportion is lower than 42%.

Mr. Mizrahi fears that Jewish extremists in the West Bank are exacerbating an already tense and volatile situation, making it more difficult than ever to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “I think it’s extremely dangerous,” he said. “It adds to the animosity on both sides.”

Settler violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank has surged since the war began.

It’s already rising, but in the past 10 months The United Nations has recorded Approximately 1,270 attacks, and 856 for the whole of 2022.

During the same period, harassment by Israeli settlers forced Palestinians to leave Israel, according to Israeli human rights group B’Tselem. at least 18 villages The West Bank is the Palestinian territory between Israel and Jordan that was captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast War and has been occupied ever since.

Between October 7 and August 2024, 589 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, at least 570 of them by Israeli forces and at least 11 by settlers, According to the United Nations. They included some alleged to be planning attacks as well as unarmed civilians. During the same period, Palestinians killed five settlers and nine members of the Israeli security forces.

This week, a 40-year-old Palestinian man was reportedly shot dead after settlers and Israeli soldiers entered Wadi al-Rahhel near Bethlehem. The Israeli military said rocks were thrown at a nearby Israeli vehicle.

Last month, a 22-year-old Palestinian man was killed when dozens of settlers went on a rampage in the village of Jit, sparking international condemnation. Israeli security forces arrested four people and described the incident as a “serious terrorist incident”.

But the record of such cases is one of impunity. Israeli civil rights organization Yesh Din DiscoverBetween 2005 and 2023, only 3% of official investigations into settler violence ended in a conviction.

In a letter leaked to Israeli media by Ronen Bar, the head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service said that weak law enforcement was emboldening radical settlers.

Settlers live in exclusively Jewish communities established in parts of the West Bank.

Many settlements are legally supported by the Israeli government; other facilities known as outposts, often as simple as caravans and corrugated iron shacks, are illegal even under Israeli law. But extremists are building them regardless to seize more land.

In July, the United Nations Supreme Court discovered for the first time The statement said that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is illegal and that Israel should cease all settlement activities and withdraw its troops as soon as possible.

Israel’s Western allies have repeatedly described the settlements as an obstacle to peace. Israel rejected the findings, saying: “The Jews are not occupiers in their own land.”

There are now fears that extremists are working to make settlements in the West Bank irreversible.

Backed by the most right-wing government in Israel’s history, they have rapidly expanded their control over territory. These extremists are pushing for annexation plans for the West Bank and have publicly called for a settlement in Gaza after the war. Settlers now serve in core ministries and key ministries of the Israeli government.

Even as world leaders who oppose settlements renew their enthusiasm for a two-state solution – a long-held peace plan that hopes to create an independent Palestinian state – Israeli religious nationalists argue that all of these lands rightfully belong to Israel. , vowing to make the dream of an independent Palestinian state impossible.

Analysts believe this is why some politicians refuse to accept any ceasefire agreement.

“The reason they don’t want to end the conflict or make a hostage deal is they think Israel should keep fighting until it can stay in Gaza,” said Tal Schneider, a political reporter for The Times.

“They think their ideology is more righteous in the long run,” she added. “It’s their own logic.”

Meanwhile, Israeli authorities announced the plan five new settlementsincluding Shane’s land, and announced a record acreage, At least 23 square kilometersfor the country. This means that Israel considers it to be Israeli land, whether it is in occupied Palestinian territory, privately owned by Palestinians, or both, and Palestinians are prohibited from using it.

By changing the facts on the ground, as the settlers describe it, they hoped to move enough Israelis to the land and build enough on it to make their presence irreversible. Their long-term hope is for Israel to formally annex the land.

In addition to state-sanctioned land seizures, extremists have quickly established settlement outposts.

In a photo taken in Kanub, north of Hebron, satellite imagery shows the emergence of new caravans and roads in the months since the war began. At the same time, entire Palestinian communities were forced to leave the land.

We drove to al-Qanoub with Ibrahim Shalalda, 50, and his uncle Mohammed, 80, who told us that their home was destroyed last November. The settlers destroyed.

As we approached, an extremist settler blocked the road with his car.

Armed Israelis soon arrived. The group – a number of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers with badges on their uniforms, one of whom was identified as a settlement security officer – stopped us for inspection.

Settlement guards forcibly searched two Palestinian farmers from their vehicle. Two hours later, IDF soldiers dispersed the settlers and allowed the BBC car to leave.

Israel began settling the West Bank shortly after seizing and occupying it from Jordan more than fifty years ago. Successive governments since then have allowed the settlement to expand slowly.

Today, an estimated 3 million Palestinians live on the land—excluding Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem—and about 3 million more Palestinians live on the land. Half a million Jewish Israelis Spread over more than 130 settlements.

But a prominent far-right government figure taking office in 2022 has pledged to double the number of settlers to 1 million.

Bezalel Smotrich believed that the Jews had a God-given right to these lands. He is the leader of one of two far-right pro-settler parties that veteran Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has included in his governing coalition when he returns to power in 2022 elections.

Mr. Smotrich served as finance minister while also serving in the Defense Ministry, allowing him to institute sweeping changes in Israeli policy in the West Bank.

He invested state finances heavily in settlements, including new roads and infrastructure. But he also created a new bureaucracy that wrested power from the military to fast-track settlement construction.

exist Secret recording of remarks Smotrich boasted to supporters that he was working to “change the DNA of the system” and achieve de facto annexation that would be “more acceptable in the international and legal context.”

Religious nationalists have been on the fringes of Israeli politics for decades.

But their ideology slowly became more popular. In the 2022 elections, these parties hold 13 seats in the 120-seat Knesset and serve as advocates for Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition.

During the war, Bezalel Smotrich and activist Itamar Ben Gvir, now Israel’s minister of national security, repeatedly made statements that inflamed social divisions and angered Israel’s Western allies.

Ben Gvir said it was “shameful” for Israel to arrest “our best hero” after the Israeli military arrested a reservist accused of sexually assaulting a Palestinian detainee. This month, Smotrich said it might be “reasonable and moral” to let Gazans starve.

But the far right is seeking permanent change in the West Bank and Gaza. “This is a group of Israelis who are opposed to any kind of compromise with the Palestinians or Israel’s other Arab neighbors,” said Anshel Pfeffer, a veteran Israeli journalist and correspondent for The Economist.

With the war in Gaza, the far right sees new opportunities. Mr Smotrich called on Palestinian residents to leave to make way for Israelis who could “make the desert bloom”.

Although Mr Netanyahu has ruled out restoring Jewish settlements in Gaza, he remains beholden to far-right parties that have threatened to end the current ceasefire if he signs a “reckless” ceasefire. Bring home Israeli hostages held by Hamas and they will dismantle his alliance.

The extremists’ logic may be followed by only a few Israelis. But it is helping to prolong the war and dramatically change the face of the West Bank – causing long-term damage to the chances of peace.

Above: Getty Images

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