Israeli authorities have approved the largest land seizure in the West Bank in over three decades, according to a watchdog. This significant move targets 12.7 square kilometres (4.9 square miles) of land in the Jordan Valley, as revealed by the Peace Now NGO. The government’s decision was finalised last month but only became public knowledge recently. This latest seizure increases the total land declared as Israeli state land in the West Bank this year to 23.7 square kilometres (9.15 square miles), marking 2024 as the peak year for such actions.

The Jordan Valley land in question is contiguous and situated northeast of Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian Authority. By designating this land as state land, the Israeli government enables it to be leased to Israelis while prohibiting private Palestinian ownership. Israeli settlements in the West Bank are deemed illegal under international law. They are frequently cited as significant obstacles to achieving a lasting peace agreement based on a two-state solution. Peace Now emphasised the need for a political settlement to establish a Palestinian state alongside Israel and criticised the Israeli government for actions that distance the possibility of peace and exacerbate the conflict.

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who oversees settlement planning and resides in a settlement himself, has vowed to increase the settler population in the West Bank by a million. As a prominent leader among the hardline nationalist political forces supporting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government, Smotrich’s stance is pivotal. Peace Now accused Netanyahu and Smotrich of prioritising the interests of a small group of settlers over the broader interests of the Israeli people and the need to resolve the political conflict. The occupied West Bank is home to over 100 settlements with more than 500,000 Israeli settlers, while three million Palestinians live under Israeli military rule, enduring frequent military raids and escalating tensions.