Palestinian leaders on Thursday and Friday strongly condemned an Israeli security cabinet vote on Thursday night that unanimously approved the establishment of a new illegal Israeli settlement on occupied Palestinian land, for the first time in 20 years.
According to Israeli daily Haaretz, the new settlement Emek Shilo will be located near the already established illegal settlement of Shilo in the occupied West Bank district of Ramallah. Citing a statement released by the Israeli Prime Minister’s office, Haaretz said that the decision to establish the settlement — in violation of international law — was part of a “promise” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave to Israeli settlers of the illegal Amona outpost as residents were facing court-sanctioned demolitions several months ago after building on private Palestinian land.
Haaretz also reported that Netanyahu had previously told US President Donald Trump’s administration that he “intended to keep his promise,” and added that “politically speaking, it was impossible for him to renege on it.”
The decision will be presented to Israeli ministers not part of the security cabinet in a poll to decide whether the controversial move receives final approval, according to Haaretz.
UN slams Israel over Emek Shilo settlement @AJENews https://t.co/B5A6pml6Gw
— charychaplin (@charychaplin79) April 1, 2017
Peace Now released a statement following the decision, pointing out that the decisions made in the cabinet meeting also included Netanyahu announcing his final approval of the marketing of land that could provide the construction of up to 2,000 new settler units and the declaring of 977 dunums (241 acres) of Palestinian land as Israeli state land for the retroactive legalization of three Israeli settler outposts.
“Israel continues to destroy the prospects of peace in our region and to severely affect our lives by the theft of land and natural resources, and by the further fragmentation of our country,” Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Saeb Erekat said in a statement on Friday in response to the decision.
Meanwhile, PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi also slammed the decision. “It is ironic that on the same day Palestinians somberly commemorated the killing of six Palestinians and the injury of more than 100 others who nonviolently protested Israel’s decision to steal more than 20,000 dunams of land in the Galilee in 1976, Israel announced the establishment of a new illegal settlement,” Ashrawi said in a statement released Thursday night.
Israel blasted for approving Emek Shilo settlement https://t.co/pHcXp0bY6d pic.twitter.com/fgwIaTfVZ9
— Ben White (@benabyad) March 31, 2017
The Hamas movement also released a statement following the decision, saying that Israel has “revolted” against international resolutions that have repeatedly rejected Israel’s settlement enterprise and underscored their illegality under international law.
Following the passage of UNSC resolution 2334, which strongly condemned Israeli settlements, and the more recent resolutions adopted by the UNHCR condemning Israel for its human rights violations in the Palestinian territory, which also included expanding Israeli settlements, the Israeli government responded with approving the expansion of settlements, including the passage of the outpost Legalization bill, and the revocation of $2 million of financial support to the UN.
“All Arab leaders who participated in the Arab Summit must confront this serious challenge of Israel continuing its aggressions against the Palestinian people,” the Hamas statement added.
(Ma’an, PC, Social Media)
