Скачать или смотреть Israel to declare West Bank land ‘state property’ - explained | MEE Live

The Israeli government has approved a plan to claim large areas of the occupied West Bank as “state property” if Palestinians cannot prove ownership, prompting accusations of “de facto annexation”.

The registration process - which could start as soon as this year - would mark the first time since 1967 that Israel has absorbed part of the West Bank into its territory, in what could amount to more than half of the enclave.

After decades of settler destruction, the bar to prove Palestinian ownership is extremely high, and the move could dispossess thousands of Palestinians of rights to their land.

The proposal was submitted by Israeli Minister of Justice Yariv Levin, Minister of Defence Israel Katz, and far-right Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich, who described it on Israeli media as part of “the settlement revolution to control all our lands”.

Their official joint statement took a different tone, framing the decision as a security and governance measure.

Under international law, an occupying power is prohibited from undertaking land registration in occupied territory due to its irreversible nature.

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