Agencies, Jerusalem :
Israel confirmed on Thursday it was planning to appropriate a large tract of fertile land in the occupied West Bank, close to Jordan, a move likely to exacerbate tensions with Western allies and already drawing international condemnation.
In an email sent to Reuters, COGAT, a unit of the Defense Ministry, said the political decision to seize the territory had been taken and “the lands are in the final stages of being declared state lands”.
The farmland is said to be located in the Jordan Valley south of Jericho and, according to settlement watchdog Peace Now, would mark the biggest declaration since a seizure of 400 hectares in 2014.
The Israeli defence ministry unit that oversees civilian affairs in the West Bank, known as COGAT, said in a statement that “the lands are in final stages to be declared as state lands”. It did not provide further details, including who was considered the current owner.
Peace Now said the land had been taken over by Israeli settlers years ago for farming. Israeli media reported that the land amounted to 150 hectares and said it was north of the Israeli settlement of Almog.
Previous seizures have been harshly criticised by Palestinians, rights groups and much of the international community. Such moves erode the territory Palestinians see as part of their future state, further complicating peace efforts.
“Continued land confiscation by the (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu government is a diplomatic catastrophe,” Peace Now said in a statement.
“The government’s decision is another step on the way to destroy the possibility for a two-state solution.” Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon’s office declined comment.
Israel faced international condemnation after the 2014 seizure near Bethlehem in the area of the Gush Etzion settlement bloc.
Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now said it is Israel’s largest land expropriation in the West Bank since Israel declared nearly 1,000 acres (400 hectares) of the West Bank as state land in 2014 in a move that drew international criticism.
“The government’s decision is another step on the way to destroy the possibility for a two state solution,” Peace Now said in a statement.
Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 war. Palestinians demand the territory as part of their future state. Virtually the entire international community view Israeli settlements in the territory as illegal or illegitimate.
Israel confirmed on Thursday it was planning to appropriate a large tract of fertile land in the occupied West Bank, close to Jordan, a move likely to exacerbate tensions with Western allies and already drawing international condemnation.
In an email sent to Reuters, COGAT, a unit of the Defense Ministry, said the political decision to seize the territory had been taken and “the lands are in the final stages of being declared state lands”.
The farmland is said to be located in the Jordan Valley south of Jericho and, according to settlement watchdog Peace Now, would mark the biggest declaration since a seizure of 400 hectares in 2014.
The Israeli defence ministry unit that oversees civilian affairs in the West Bank, known as COGAT, said in a statement that “the lands are in final stages to be declared as state lands”. It did not provide further details, including who was considered the current owner.
Peace Now said the land had been taken over by Israeli settlers years ago for farming. Israeli media reported that the land amounted to 150 hectares and said it was north of the Israeli settlement of Almog.
Previous seizures have been harshly criticised by Palestinians, rights groups and much of the international community. Such moves erode the territory Palestinians see as part of their future state, further complicating peace efforts.
“Continued land confiscation by the (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu government is a diplomatic catastrophe,” Peace Now said in a statement.
“The government’s decision is another step on the way to destroy the possibility for a two-state solution.” Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon’s office declined comment.
Israel faced international condemnation after the 2014 seizure near Bethlehem in the area of the Gush Etzion settlement bloc.
Israeli anti-settlement group Peace Now said it is Israel’s largest land expropriation in the West Bank since Israel declared nearly 1,000 acres (400 hectares) of the West Bank as state land in 2014 in a move that drew international criticism.
“The government’s decision is another step on the way to destroy the possibility for a two state solution,” Peace Now said in a statement.
Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 war. Palestinians demand the territory as part of their future state. Virtually the entire international community view Israeli settlements in the territory as illegal or illegitimate.
