Israeli Cabinet secretly approves establishment of 34 new settlements in West Bank

OCCUPIED PALESTINE, April. 09 (YPA) – The Israeli cabinet approved the establishment of 34 new settlements in the West Bank, in the largest single approval of settlements in years.

The decision included areas within Palestinian enclaves and remote points not easily accessible to occupation forces.

The new settlements include “Noa” and “Emek Dotan,” with “Noa” located south of the settlements of Ganim and Kadim near Qabatiya, and “Emek Dotan” settlement connects Sanur, Homesh, and Shavei Shomron.

The Chief of Staff of the occupation army expressed reservations about implementation due to limited manpower and requested that the settlements be implemented gradually.

It is worth noting that the decision comes after the Israeli government approved, in mid-February, land settlement and registration procedures in the West Bank for the first time.

The decision allows for the registration of large areas in the West Bank as “state land,” and the allocation of budgets and positions for the Real Estate Ownership Registration and Settlement Authority in the Ministry of Justice, which allows for tightening control over the land and deepening the annexation plan.

The Cabinet also approved a package of decisions to transfer building permit powers in the city of Hebron, including the area surrounding the Ibrahimi Mosque, to the Civil Administration Unit of the army under the responsibility of Defense Minister Smotrich, which expands settlement outposts and weakens the Hebron Agreement.

It should be noted that these moves aim to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state and consolidate “de facto sovereignty” over the West Bank, in parallel with the continuation of the war and the escalation of field tensions.