0
0
Israel recently approved its long-delayed settlement plan for the E1 area in the West Bank, a move that could effectively divide the territory in two. The settlement project is located east of Jerusalem, and its development is seen as a major obstacle to the future establishment of a contiguous Palestinian state. Since 1967, Israel has established around 160 settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem, resulting in roughly 700,000 Israelis living among 3.3 million Palestinians in the region.
The BBC report highlights a range of global reactions to the settlement approval, including condemnation from the Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now, the Palestinian Authority, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, and King Abdullah II of Jordan, all of whom criticized the new project to annex parts of the West Bank.
“Whether or not there should be massive development in E1 is a decision for the government of Israel to make… As a general rule, it is not a violation of international law. And it is also incumbent on all of us to recognize that Israelis have a right to live in Israel,” said Zionist and US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Israel’s Army Radio show.
The UN Palestinian Rights Committee Bureau has issued a statement opposing Israel’s recently approved E1 settlement project. The statement highlights that under international law, building settlements in East Jerusalem and splitting the West Bank into two severely disrupts Palestinian communities. The UN, together with France and Saudi Arabia, plans to hold a conference on September 22nd, ensuring Palestinians’ to discuss how best to ensure the possibility of a future Palestinian state.
The E1 settlement plan was first proposed in 1991 by the Yitzhak Shamir government and later advanced by the proceeding prime minister Yitzhak Rabin. In 2004, the plan was put on hold due to US opposition to settlement expansion. E1 is a 12-square-kilometer area in the West Bank that sits between East Jerusalem and the Israeli settlement city of Maale Adumim. The plan would physically link Jerusalem with Maale Adumim, creating a continuous settlement comprising 3,412 housing units and potentially add 12,000 to 15,000 residents. The project has recently been approved by the Civil Administration’s Higher Planning Committee.
“Undermines the two-state solution,” said senior EU diplomat on foreign affairs Kaja Kallas in response to the settlement plan, which would “permanently cut the geographical and territorial contiguity between occupied East and the West Bank and sever the connection between the northern and southern West Bank”.
Construction on the settlement project could begin within the next few months to a year; it would include approximately 3,500 apartments near Maale Adumin. Adding about 350 additional homes in the settlement of Ashael near Herbron. While Israel dismantled its settlement in Gaza in 2005, the West Bank settlement project remains firmly in place as a permanent development.
“The Palestinian state is being erased from the table not with slogans but with actions,” said Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. “Every settlement, every neighborhood, every housing unit is another nail in the coffin of this dangerous idea”.
Smotrich celebrated the approval of the E1 as a “historic” step to strengthen Israeli control and end the Palestinian state, presenting it as part of the government’s long-term sovereignty plan and core expression of “Zionism at its best”. The housing units would also force Palestinian subjects to travel from Ramallah in the north around a wide detour, passing multiple Israeli checkpoints that would add hours to the journey south to Bethlehem.
Gaza City
Israel’s security cabinet has agreed on a plan to take control of Gaza City, located in the north of the Palestinian enclave. The plan known as “Gideon’s Chariots 2” outlines five main steps of first, disarming Hamas, freeing all hostages, demilitarizing, taking security control of the territory, and setting up a civil administration of neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority. This move could put thousands of Palestinians at risk as 87% of Gaza is militarized, and the safety of Israeli hostages remains uncertain.
The plan to occupy Gaza City comes despite ongoing talks between Egypt, Qatar, and the US to bring about a ceasefire and prisoner exchange. Israeli Settlement Minister Orit Strook expressed her support for the military operation, stating that it has the backing of the “overwhelming majority of the public”. Her comments drew criticism from the hostage families, who condemned her public display of support for the war despite the risks to the hostages.
Taking over Gaza City is expected to take at least several months to a year in order to neutralize Hamas both above and below ground completely. The Israeli government has called 60,000 reservists to prepare for a major operation in Gaza City, but will not begin until a designated humanitarian zone is established, according to Army Chief Eyal Zamir.
“A siege will be imposed on the Hamas militants who remain in Gaza City, and at the same time, a ground offensive will be carried out in Gaza City,” said an unnamed Israeli official according to Times of Israel, who stated that all Palestinians would be forced to move to “central camps and other areas by October 7th”.
It remains unclear how many people are still in Gaza City, many residents fled early in the war under Israeli evacuation orders, though some returned during a brief ceasefire. The new offensive is expected to force more civilians to flee, further worsening the humanitarian crisis. Hamas has voiced concern that Prime Minister Netanyahu is prioritizing the takeover of Gaza City over both the safety of hostages and ongoing ceasefire negotiations.
Israel has launched operations on the outskirts of Gaza City, targeting the neighborhoods of Zeitoun and Jabalia to weaken Hamas strongholds. Locals have reported that 25 Palestinians have been killed, including 3 children. The Red Cross and UN have warned that further escalation will worsen the humanitarian crisis for the Palestinian population and have called for an immediate ceasefire.
“We will deepen the damage to Hamas in Gaza City, a stronghold of governmental and military terror for the terrorist organization,” said Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Derfin. “We will deepen the damage to the tarot infrastructure above and below the ground and serve the population’s dependence on Hamas”.
To what degree Hamas remains a threat to Israel or even Israel’s ability to occupy large parts of Gaza is unclear. There haven’t been any significant offensive actions by the group in months, and the IDF have had complete freedom to establish multiple military strongholds while demolishing over 85% of all buildings in the whole enclave.
Reuters reports that Palestinians sheltering at the Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City, were tormented the entire night by explosive-laden drones detonated by the IDF which killed civilians including women and children. These were apparently followed by leaflets demanding them to move south in advance of the occupation plan. Over 107 Palestinians starved to death over the weekend as aid continues to be insufficient to prevent the worst effects of the famine which was declared in late August. WaL
We Humbly Ask For Your Support—Follow the link here to see all the ways, monetary and non-monetary.
PICTURED ABOVE: The Maale Adumim sttlement in the West Bank’s E1 area. PC WebsThatSell via Flickr, CC 2.0.
