LONDON: More than 6,000 ha of land near the Palestinian town of Yabad in the northern West Bank has been designated for seizure under an Israeli military order, according to the Wafa news agency.
The area is owned by the residents of Zabda village in the Jenin governorate. This week, a seizure order was issued under the pretext of using it for military purposes until the end of 2028, the news agency said.
Saleh Amarna, head of the Zabda village council, said that “the council will pursue the matter through all legal channels and exert every possible effort to overturn the order.”
Israeli military orders hold the power of executive and legislative authority. Israel has used the orders since it occupied the West Bank in June 1967 to administer the territories’ civilian movement, land ownership, and construction.
The Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories, a branch within Israel’s Ministry of Defense, is responsible for implementing the orders issued by each area’s military commander.
Separately, Israeli settlers forced a Bedouin family to leave the area west of Al-Auja village, north of Jericho, after repeated attacks and intimidation. Seven members of the family of Ibrahim Suleiman Kaabneh packed their belongings on Thursday.
On Monday, EU foreign ministers agreed to impose new sanctions on Israeli settlers due to their violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
About 500,000 Israeli settlers live in hundreds of illegal settlements and small outposts in the West Bank, with 250,000 more living in East Jerusalem.
