Bethlehem/PNN/

The Wall and Settlement Resistance’s  Committee stated that Israeli occupation forces and settler militias committed 4,073 violations against our people, their land, and their holy sites during the first half of 2023.

The Chairman of the committee Muayyad Shaban, explained in the semi-annual report on "Israeli State Attacks and Settlers on Palestinian Territories" for the first half of 2023 that these attacks ranged from land destruction and excavation, uprooting trees, confiscating properties, closing checkpoints, causing physical injuries. The majority of these violations were concentrated in the Nablus Governorate with 952 incidents, followed by the Jenin Governorate with 553 incidents, and then the Bethlehem Governorate with 435 incidents.

He further emphasized that the series of collective attacks carried out by settler militias in recent weeks on the secure Palestinian villages of Hawara, Turmus Ayya, Am Saffa, Aurif, Qaryut, Deir Dibwan, and others have raised alarm bells regarding the nature of the upcoming phase of the conflict. This phase has been well prepared by the frameworks of the official occupation state, firstly through the ascension of settler gang leaders to positions of power in the occupying state, and secondly as a result of religious terrorism schools that have produced this generation of terrorist settlers. This scenario places innocent Palestinian civilians facing the terrorism of armed settlers, protected by the might of the army, which criminalizes any attempt by Palestinians to defend themselves and their land.

The report also indicated that the attacks carried out by settlers reached 1,148 incidents, resulting in the martyrdom of eight civilians at the hands of settlers. These attacks included the establishment of settlement outposts, seizing citizens' lands, assaulting streets and vehicles, invading villages, burning properties, direct shooting, and organized and dangerous attacks as witnessed recently in Hawara, Turmus Ayya, Al-Lubban, Aurif, Masafer Yatta, and others. These attacks were concentrated in the Nablus Governorate with 470 incidents, followed by the Ramallah Governorate with 265 incidents.

Regarding settlements, the report mentioned that the occupation authorities have studied a total of 75 structural plans for expanding settlements or establishing new ones in the West Bank. Through these plans, a total of 13,000 settlement units were studied (8,131 units for deposit and 5,191 units for approval).

The report also stated that settlers established 13 new settlement outposts on citizens' lands during the first half of 2023, the majority of which were agricultural outposts, in the governorates of Ramallah, Nablus, Salfit, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, and Hebron. Furthermore, the occupation authorities legalized four new outposts in the vicinity of the "Aili" settlement, between the governorates of Ramallah and Nablus.

Regarding land confiscation, the report mentioned that the occupation authorities seized more than 44,000 dunams under various pretexts, including modifying the boundaries of natural reserves, confiscation orders, military land confiscation orders, and declaring state lands. Among these, 43,000 dunams were modified from natural reserves in the Jerusalem and Jericho governorates, 433 dunams were confiscated through three confiscation orders issued by the occupation state to serve settlers, and 449 dunams were seized through nine military land confiscation orders. Additionally, one declaration seized 14.5 dunams as state lands.

In terms of demolitions, the report highlighted that the occupation authorities issued 822 demolition notices for Palestinian structures under the pretext of lacking permits, a significant and record-breaking increase compared to the same period in the previous two years. Most of these notices were concentrated in the Hebron (221 notices) and Bethlehem (170 notices) governorates.

The report confirmed that the occupation authorities carried out a total of 256 demolition operations, resulting in the destruction of 303 structures in the West Bank, including Jerusalem. This included the repeated demolition of a primary school in Jabal al-Dheib in the Bethlehem Governorate. As a result, 543 individuals, including 272 children, were displaced.

Regarding tree destruction, the report indicated that the occupation forces and settlers caused the cutting and damage of a total of 8,340 trees since the beginning of the current year. The majority of these incidents occurred in the Hebron Governorate with 2,005 trees cut, followed by Ramallah Governorate with 1,871 trees, and Nablus Governorate with 1,797 trees