It turns the north of the West Bank into ghettos besieged by settlements.. What does Netanyahu want from extending the state of emergency in the West Bank?

Occupied Jerusalem

- The approval by the Israeli Knesset in the three readings of extending the validity of emergency regulations and imposing Israeli laws in the West Bank carried messages indicating that the Israeli government headed by Benjamin Netanyahu is moving towards expanding the settlement project, the gradual annexation of the West Bank, and the weakening of the Palestinian Authority.

Yesterday, Wednesday, the Israeli Knesset extended the emergency law in the West Bank for an additional 5 years, with the support of 39 Knesset members against the opposition of 12. The law - which was enacted in 1967 and is extended every 5 years - provides for the treatment of settlers in the West Bank as citizens of Israel.

The acceleration of the far-right government's approval of emergency regulations in the West Bank reflected the agreements that paved the way for the formation of the current government coalition in partnership with the Likud, the alliance of religious Zionism and the Haredi parties that reject any settlement with the Palestinian Authority and oppose the establishment of any Palestinian state in the West Bank, even if it is demilitarized.

This also suggests that the Netanyahu government views the West Bank as an integral part of the "Land of Israel", as it affirms that settlement in Palestine is an "exclusive right of the Jewish people", by adopting the agenda and program of the "Alliance of Religious Zionism" party headed by Minister Bezalel Smotrich, which calls for dismantling The so-called "civil administration" and the annexation of the West Bank to Israeli sovereignty.

Agricultural settlement projects in Masafer Yatta on the Palestinian territories (Al-Jazeera)

wide powers

The state of emergency regime in force since the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Jerusalem in 1976 grants broad powers to the army and military leaders to unilaterally control the West Bank and the Palestinians, noting that the validity of this law, which has become known as the "Apartheid Law", constitutes a lever for expanding the Zionist project, and it is another aspect of displacing the Palestinians and establishing settlements. .

The extension of the state of emergency in the West Bank is consistent with the combined party programs of the government coalition and the coalition agreements by placing the settlement project at the top of the Israeli government’s priorities, and granting broad powers to the political level, party leaders, and Israeli ministries for Jewish settlement construction in exchange for demolition and confiscation of Palestinian lands.

About 725,000 settlers live in the West Bank in 176 settlements that have been licensed by successive Israeli governments and the authorities of the occupation army, in addition to 283 settlement outposts without obtaining the approval of the occupation authorities.

Settlement organizations - which are considered the political executive arm of the government and the military arm of the occupation army - have been establishing settlement outposts, in order to seize Area C and transfer them to Jews and settlements, and to settle about 300,000 settlers over the next two years.

articulated stage

In turn, the official responsible for the settlement file in the northern West Bank, Ghassan Douglas, believes that the extension of the emergency regulations in the occupied Palestinian territories in 1967 gives the Israeli government and the occupation security and military authorities broad powers in order to accelerate the process of annexing large parts of the West Bank - especially Area C - to sovereignty. Israeli.

In his interview with Al-Jazeera Net, Douglas confirmed that the West Bank is at a critical stage in light of the Israeli extreme right-wing government whose agenda was revealed, and that it employs all laws in order to expand the Zionist project in all of historical Palestine and establish settlement in the West Bank at the expense of the Palestinian population.

The official in charge of the settlement file in the northern West Bank stated that the Netanyahu government is racing against time to devote settlement and religious Zionist presence in the West Bank to create a fait accompli and developments besieging the Palestinian presence, which has become in the circle of targeting, demolition and displacement with the renewal of the state of emergency.

settlement blocs

Douglas believes that the extension of the state of emergency and the application of Israeli laws in the West Bank settlements gives the green light to legitimize the outposts and create geographical contiguity between the settlement blocs, and also gives wide powers to the political and military levels of the occupation to take decisions and implement measures against the Palestinians.

Douglas warned of the repercussions of extending the emergency regulations on the Palestinian presence in the West Bank, saying, "The Palestinians fear that the occupation government will return to settlement projects in the northern West Bank by returning to 3 settlements from which Israel withdrew in 2005, and linking Nablus and Jenin with the settlements."

He stressed that the occupation government, by extending the state of emergency, will grant legal cover to settler gangs and their crimes without any punishment, and will establish more settlement outposts on privately owned lands for Palestinians, especially in the northern West Bank.

besieged ghettos

Douglas believes that extending the state of emergency will accelerate the expansion of the settlement project in the West Bank and the Jordan Valley, by seizing the largest flat area of ​​land in Area C and allocating it for military settlement in preparation for its confiscation.

The official responsible for the settlement file in the northern West Bank states that the residential communities and the Palestinian presence will turn into ghettos besieged by settlements during the period of validity of the state of emergency in the next five years, which means perpetuating apartheid after expanding settlements and imposing full Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank.

It is believed that the northern West Bank will be in the eye of the settlement storm of the government of the extreme right, indicating that the state of escalation created by the occupation in the past two years and is still continuing in the governorates of Nablus and Jenin through daily incursions and the policy of field executions aimed at intimidating the Palestinians and weakening the Palestinian Authority to intensify settlement in the northern West Bank.

Israeli sovereignty

On the Israeli side, the Israeli journalist specialized in Palestinian and Arab affairs Yoav Stern agrees with the proposal of the settlement file official in the northern West Bank, saying that extending the validity of the state of emergency in the West Bank reflects the agenda, projects and plans of the sixth Netanyahu government by gradually annexing the West Bank and establishing the settlement presence in Area C on the account of the Palestinians.

Stern explained to Al-Jazeera Net that the approval of the Netanyahu government on the entry into force of emergency regulations reflects the government's stated goal of the gradual annexation of the West Bank, and also serves as a message to Israeli society that this government is stable and solid, despite the constitutional crisis following the dismissal of Aryeh Deri, the leader of "Shas", from his ministerial position by decision of the Supreme Court. Israeli.

It is believed that the coalition of the Netanyahu government, which accelerated the process of approving the extension of the state of emergency - and it is the same coalition that thwarted the law during the "Bennett-Lapid" government - is racing against time to impose Israeli sovereignty over the entire West Bank, and in return the gradual dismantling and weakening of the Palestinian Authority.