Israel orders seizure of 30 hectares of Palestinian land in West Bank

Moayad Shaaban, head of the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, said on Tuesday that Israeli authorities have issued a military order to seize 30 hectares of Palestinian land near Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, adding that the measure marks the third such expropriation order issued since the beginning of 2026.

Archaeological site designation

The order targets land in the Jabal Al-Fureidis area east of Bethlehem and is intended to facilitate the development of what Israeli authorities describe as an archaeological site. According to Shaaban, Israeli authorities had already declared 17.1 hectares of surrounding land as state property in 2024.

Shaaban warned that the decision forms part of a broader policy aimed at imposing legal and administrative control over Palestinian land to serve settlement housing projects. He described the policy as one of the most dangerous tools used to impose de facto annexation of Palestinian territory through unilateral measures that violate international law.

Occupation context

The announcement comes amid increased Israeli measures to register West Bank land as state property — including a February decision allowing such registration for the first time since 1967. Israeli violence has surged across the occupied territory since October 2023, with Palestinian officials reporting 1,168 deaths, 12,666 injuries and nearly 23,000 arrests as of May 26.