Israel took another step toward annexing the West Bank on Sunday when its government approved a proposal that will register parts of the West Bank as “state property,” which Bezalel Smotrich, the settler finance minister, said is the continuation of “the settlement revolution to control all our lands.”
Israeli officials on Sunday took another step towards fully annexing the West Bank by removing hurdles for “settlers” to purchase land inside the territory in direct contradiction to international law.
The European Commission last week called on Israel to stop its E1 settlement expansion project signed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in September that was seen as the death knell for any possibility of a two-state solution in the region.
Bezalel Smotrich, the Israeli finance minister, announced last week that Israel will allow the construction of 764 new houses in three strategically important settlements inside the West Bank, which he said will ensure “continuity of life, security and growth.”
Palestinians living in the West Bank are experiencing an Israeli land-steal not seen in decades as Tel Aviv implements its plan to build 22 new villages inside settlements in the northern West Bank.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Israeli national security minister, came out strongly against the language in the Gaza ceasefire deal that vaguely mentions a pathway to a Palestinian state and rejected the idea as farcical.
Bezalel Smotrich, the Israeli finance minister, said Thursday that he did not agree with the ceasefire deal that was signed by Hamas and the Israeli government, but said that didn’t matter anyway, because Israel will continue where it left off after it receives the hostages.
Bezalel Smotrich, the Israeli finance minister and top “settler,” said at a conference that Gaza “is becoming a real estate bonanza” and there are already discussions in place with the U.S. about “how to divide the percentages of the land in Gaza.”
Top Israelis warned last month that the more European countries that say they’ll recognize a Palestinian state, the more settlements Israel will build to smash any hopes of one, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with the full backing of the Trump administration, signed an agreement Thursday that he said is the death knell of any two-state solution.
Bezalel Smotrich, the Israeli finance minister, called on the IDF to either kill or starve out the remaining Palestinians still in Gaza City after a clash with the country’s military chief who warned that it could take some time to move the civilian population from the shelled-out city.