Israel steals 115 acres of Palestinian land in latest West Bank settlement grab

Israeli occupation authorities have expropriated more than a hundred acres of Palestinian land in the central part of the occupied West Bank by designating the area as "state land" for the purpose of illegal settlement expansion in the region.

The anti-settlement Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission reported on Wednesday that Israeli occupation authorities have escalated attempts to entrench colonial dominance over Palestinian territory by declaring 464.4 dunams (approximately 115 acres) in the town of Sinjil as "state land."

The decision specifically targets the area where the colonial outpost of Givat Haroeh, currently referred to as Karmei Oz, was established in 1998.

The commission highlighted that on December 11, the Israeli regime made a decision to retroactively transform the Givat Haroeh outpost into an independent colony.

It clarified that the declaration of "state land" includes the entire area occupied by the colonial outpost, which is positioned between the colonies of Shilo to the east and Ma’ale Levona to the west, flanking both sides of Route 60.

The measure aims to establish a continuous geographical corridor that links the elements of the so-called "Shilo settlement bloc" by connecting the outpost to adjacent colonies, thereby further entrenching Israeli control over extensive areas of Palestinian land in the region.

In the early hours of Thursday, a young Palestinian man was killed when Israeli occupation forces (IOF) shot him inside his residence in the town of Sarta, located west of Salfit.

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Local sources identified the victim as 32-year-old Mustafa Taha Mustafa Khatib, noting that Israeli troops fatally shot him on the spot.

Video footage circulated on social media platforms shows Khatib's body after he was shot by IOF gunfire within his home in the town.

This came a day after Israeli troops killed 29-year-old Mohamed Zayed and took his body after surrounding and raiding a house in the town of al-Yamun, situated west of Jenin.

According to reports from Israeli and Palestinian rights organizations, there has been a notable increase in violence perpetrated by Israeli occupiers in the occupied West Bank in recent years, including assaults on Palestinian communities, agricultural land, and property.

Since the Gaza genocidal onslaught began in October 2023, the West Bank has experienced a surge in assaults by the Israeli military against Palestinians and their properties.

The Israeli military's incursions into the West Bank have resulted in the deaths of at least 1,173 Palestinians, injuries to 12,666 individuals, the abduction of approximately 23,000 people, and the displacement of 33,000, based on official Palestinian statistics.

Palestinians say these assaults are facilitating Israel's plans to formally annex the West Bank, thereby eliminating the potential for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in accordance with United Nations resolutions.

The Israeli regime was founded in 1948 on territories that were occupied by terrorist Zionist groups, and in 1967, it took control of the remaining Palestinian lands, which include the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and the eastern section of al-Quds.

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