Israeli occupation plans to build thousands of new settlement units in the West Bank

The Israeli occupation plans to build thousands of settlement units in occupied Al-Quds (Jerusalem) and the rest of the West Bank cities in a blatant challenge to the international community which has affirmed its rejection of the Israeli settlement expansion plans and called for immediately stopping these illegal activities.

In its weekly report, published on Saturday, the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s (PLO) National Bureau for Defending the Land and Resisting Settlements said that the occupation authorities will start implementing the “Wadi Al-Silicon” (Silicon Valley) settlement project which was launched three years ago in Wadi Al-Jouz neighborhood in occupied Al-Quds. The project threatens of seizing 2000 dunums of Palestinian land, demolishing more than 200 industrial and commercial facility in this neighborhood as a result of which more than 2000 Palestinian workers will lose their jobs and their source of livelihood.

According to the report, the occupation will establish a new settlement that contains 1230 units in the area located between one of it settlements built on Jabal Abu Ghneim, southeast of Al-Quds and north of Bethlehem and another settlement built in the south of Al-Quds.  The road between Al-Quds and Bethlehem as well as between Al-Quds and the south of the West Bank will be completely cut.

The report indicated that the occupation announced a plan to establish 1,918 settlement units to expand a settlement built on the lands of the town of Beit Hanina, north of Al-Quds, on an area of 93 dunums extending towards the apartheid wall and the town of Bir Nabala, northwest of the city.

The report indicated that the occupation continues to expand settlements in the rest of the West Bank cities. It intends to establish 1,029 settlement units, 940 of which are to expand two settlements, one of which is established between Bethlehem and Al-Kahlil (Hebron), and the second southwest of Bethlehem, while the remaining 89 settlement units will be established east of Al-Quds. The occupation also seized 49 dunums of the land in the village of Rantis, northwest of Ramallah, and seized another 49 dunums of land in the village of Deir Ballut, west of Salfit.

According to the report, the occupation continues with demolishing Palestinian houses in the West Bank cities and towns and the Israeli settlers continue to storm into Palestinian towns and villages in the West Bank and attack the Palestinians and their property and vandalize their agricultural crops.

Hamda Mustafa