Report: Destructive settlement plans to dismember the West Bank and its urban areas

Nablus - Ofoq News - The National Office for Land Defense and Settlement Resistance said in its periodic report today, Saturday, that accelerating settlement plans aim to dismember the West Bank and its urban areas, by expanding settlements and settlement outposts, constructing roads, changing movement routes, and seizing lands, deepening the isolation of Palestinian communities and restricting the movement of citizens.

The office added, in its report, that the colonial plans enjoy support and protection from the occupation army, noting that the colonists are putting on their agenda the dismemberment of the Ramallah and Al-Bireh urban area, by reorganizing the roads and traffic axes in the region by opening Road (463) to the movement of the colonists, in the context of a plan that would separate eight villages and two large neighborhoods in the north of the Ramallah and Al-Bireh area from the areas located to its south, with all that accompanies that of establishing new military points, barriers, concrete blocks, and transferring military bases. , which would obstruct the daily movement of Palestinians, and also threatens to obstruct access to vital institutions, such as: the Istishari Hospital, the Arab American University, and infrastructure stations, such as the sewage treatment plant.

In this regard, at the busy Sarda intersection, where Road (463) meets the road coming from Birzeit, on September 9, six Israelis were seen placing a sign in Hebrew. Pictures taken at the site showed that members of the family of Etta and Ephraim Tzur, a mother and her son from the Beit El settlement, were killed at the place in December 1996. They called the site “Tzur Junction,” and the following week, settlers arriving in cars spread out from one side. "Dolf" settlement along the "Chinese Road", where they hung Israeli flags at two roundabouts and on both sides of the road, while the occupation army opened the iron gate for them, above which is a military point that controls the area. The colonists wrote in a video clip documenting the process of hanging the flags: “Here we are returning the axis to Jewish hands.”

The newspaper "Haaretz" reported in a report issued on the twenty-eighth of last September, that an intensive campaign is being made to open a cross road that passes within the Ramallah urban area to the movement of colonists, in conjunction with other steps to control lands and roads, along what is known as the "Wallerstein Axis", within the framework of movements that the report said reflect the ability of the colonists to plan initiatives that may be repeated in other Palestinian areas.

According to Haaretz's assessment, opening the road to the colonists requires additional security measures, such as: establishing military points and barriers, and perhaps seizing lands adjacent to it, which may lead to the separation of the villages: Ras Karkar, Al-Janiya, Deir Ammar, Bitello, Jamala, Deir Nidham, Kafr Nimah, and two large neighborhoods in the north of the Ramallah urban area, namely the Al-Rayhan suburb and Al-Tira neighborhood (or the neighborhoods surrounding the Chinese road and the Istishari Hospital north of Ramallah) from Areas south of the road.

The report concludes that the response of the occupation army to the colonists’ demands to shorten their transportation routes, in conjunction with the spread of colonial outposts, their legalization, and the expansion of the road network designated to serve the colonies, would deepen the fragmentation of the Palestinian space into smaller and more separated areas, and make movement between them longer and more difficult.

As for “Olam Katan,” the right-wing religious weekly newspaper that is the mouthpiece of “religious Zionism,” it explained that the Israeli army is working to create conditions to open this road to the movement of colonists. It is a road that passes through the heart of the Ramallah-Al-Bireh urban area, which may lead to the separation of neighborhoods and villages north of the urban area from the rest of its parts.

The newspaper quoted Israel Gantz, head of the Yesha Council and head of the Benjamin Settlements Council (central West Bank), as saying that a preliminary decision to open the road has already been taken, that the budget is available, and the Israeli army has begun security and legal preparations to implement it.

The plan to reopen the road is closely linked to the colonial outposts surrounding the “Talmon” and “Dolev” settlement blocs, located west and northwest of Ramallah, where several pastoral and agricultural outposts were established in the area surrounding the two aforementioned colonies.

The report indicated that these outposts gradually took over large areas of olive groves and water springs belonging to the surrounding Palestinian villages, and their colonists are now demanding to move freely through this axis, and the new outpost adjacent to the Al-Tira neighborhood, where intense colonial activity was recently observed on a piece of land located on a longitudinal street branching off Route 463 extending south towards the Al-Tira neighborhood, with the colonists and the army leveling this land, placing cement cubes, and a gray iron gate. Closed, raising Israeli flags above it, and using it as a gathering point and performing prayers for them.

In the south of the West Bank, the occupation authorities are planning to establish a new colony in the south of the “Gush Etzion” settlement bloc, calling it “Ghad Stinky.” This step comes within plans aimed at imposing geographical colonial continuity extending towards the city of Hebron, Jerusalem, and the Dead Sea.

The colony is located on the road linking Gush Etzion, Hebron, and the Kiryat Arba colony, with the aim of expanding Israeli control and strengthening the presence of the colonists in the southern West Bank.

The Gush Etzion Regional Council and the council’s community center have set Tuesday, September 29, 2026, as the date for holding an official inauguration ceremony for the site, which will include guided tours for settlers led by Council Chairman Yaron Rosenthal.

Circulating Israeli sources indicate that the Gush Etzion Regional Council witnessed during the last year a surge in the increase in the number of settlers amounting to 5.1%, which far exceeds the average general population growth within Israel.

The occupation government recently approved the establishment of 6 new colonies (by legitimizing existing outposts and transforming them into independent colonies) in the “Gush Etzion” colonial bloc.

The six colonies that were recently approved and legalized in the “Gush Etzion” colonial bloc, include the “Mesoot Har” colony, which was established in a site classified by the occupation authorities as an archaeological and historical site (formerly Mesoot Yitzhak), and the “Givat Adolam” colony, which aims to connect the “Gush Etzion” bloc from the west towards the Elah Valley and the Beit Shemesh area, and the “Bnei Kedem” colony, which is an outpost located in the eastern countryside. For the Bethlehem Governorate, it was officially legalized and expanded, and the “Yitziv/Avia” colony, located east of the city of Beit Sahour, where its structural plan was recently approved and prepared to establish it as an independent colony, and the “Yaar Hakarn/Yaar al-Qarn” colony, which is a forest outpost that was included in the government’s settlement and legalization decision to expand control in the surrounding area, and the “Sde Bar” colony, which is an agricultural outpost located near the “Nokadim” colony east of Bethlehem, It was integrated and transformed into a government-recognized colony, within the expanded master plans of Gush Etzion.

This rapid colonial expansion in the Gush Etzion bloc has direct, disastrous effects on the life of the Palestinian community in the Bethlehem and Hebron governorates, as it tightens the cordon around Palestinian villages and towns and turns them into separate ghettos.

The most prominent of these effects can be summarized as follows: Dismembering geographical connections (isolating cities and villages) Separating Bethlehem from Hebron: Establishing colonies, such as: “Ghad Natan” and “Maale Arugut”, in the south of the bloc, cutting off the natural and historical Palestinian geographical connection between the cities of Bethlehem and Hebron, transforming villages into ghettos and besieging villages such as (Al-Walaja, Battir, Nahalin, Wadi Fukin, and Jaba) with closed “cantons”, as the colonies surround them from all sides. regions, which prevents its natural urban expansion.

In the southern West Bank as well, the occupation authorities approved granting authority to two colonial plans that include 567 colonial units in the Hebron Governorate, in the latest episode of acceleration witnessed in the planning and colonial expansion processes in the West Bank during the current year.

The approval includes 342 units in the “Asayel” colony built on the lands of the town of Al-Samou’, within Plan No. 525, which the occupation cabinet approved to transform into a colony in 2023, and 225 units in the “Beit Hagai” colony built on the lands of Al-Rihiyya in the town of Dura, within Plan No. 517/4.

The occupation authorities had advanced the two plans in previous planning stages, before they were transferred in the session of the so-called “Planning Council” on the 23rd of this month to the stage of granting authority, which is the stage that makes the plans effective and opens the way for completing implementation and construction procedures.

According to the report, destructive colonial activities and plans also extended to the northern West Bank. Last week, the occupation authorities issued a new colonial tender to build 400 units in the “Karnei Shomron” colony, east of Qalqilya Governorate, as part of multiple construction projects with the aim of expanding the existing colony and increasing its absorptive capacity.

The plan set November 23, 2026 as the final date for closing the door to receiving tender offers, which means that the project has practically moved from the planning and licensing stage to the marketing and construction stages. The danger of this expansion in the strategic location of the “Karnei Shomron” colony in the northwest of the West Bank lies in the fact that it seizes large areas of land in the towns of (Azoun, Jinsafot, and Kafr Laqif), and deepens the dismemberment of the Palestinian communities in the region. The permanent expansion of this colony aims to merge it with the surrounding colonies, such as: “Qadumim,” “Maale Shomron,” and “Emmanuel,” to transform it into a huge colonial complex (colonial city) linking the depths of the West Bank, within the 1948 lands.

This project leads to the isolation of Palestinian villages and towns east of Qalqilya, such as: Azoun, Jinsafut, and Kafr Laqif, and turning them into besieged enclaves, which prevents their natural urban expansion, separates them geographically from the city of Qalqilya and Nablus, and strengthens complete Israeli control along Route 55, which is the main traffic artery in the region, which means imposing more barriers and restrictions on the movement of Palestinian citizens.

This expansion is not limited to residential buildings only, but is accompanied by the construction of roads, fencing of additional areas, and the seizure of hundreds of dunums of fertile agricultural land and olive trees, which constitute a basic source of livelihood for the people.

In addition to the tender for the 400 units in “Karnei Shomron,” the occupation authorities approved a number of plans in the governorate, including a plan to seize the lands of Jayus and Imatin (September 2026), after a military decision was issued to seize 160 dunums of land in the town of Jayus (located behind the apartheid wall), in addition to 21 dunums of land in the town of Imatin, east of the governorate.

The occupation had approved a package of projects that included 18 new colonial areas of influence in the West Bank, and Qalqilya Governorate received a large share of them through the expansion of pastoral and agricultural outposts located in the east of the governorate (such as those extending between Jinsafut, Jit, and Hajjah), and transforming them into independent colonies, or neighborhoods affiliated with major colonies.

The following is a summary of the weekly violations of the occupation and colonizers:

Jerusalem

Hundreds of colonists repeatedly stormed the courtyards of the Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, under heavy protection from the occupation police, coinciding with the fifth day of the so-called Jewish “Throne Day.”

The Islamic Endowments Department in Jerusalem counted the entry of about 1,317 colonists into the mosque, where they carried out provocative tours throughout it. The raids witnessed the participation of Israeli political figures, including former Knesset member Moshe Feiglin, who led a group of colonists and performed Talmudic rituals inside the courtyards.

The intruders also carried "plant offerings" and performed public prayers in the eastern area of ​​the mosque, in a move that reflects the escalation of attempts to impose a new reality inside the Holy Mosque.

The pace of violations has reached record levels since the beginning of this year, with the total number of intruders reaching more than 52,000 settlers. Thus, the number of those who have stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque since the beginning of this year has risen to 52,277 settlers, amid continuing violations and an escalation in the performance of public religious rituals.

These incursions were accompanied by strict military measures in the vicinity of the Old City, as the occupation forces closed several roads leading to Al-Aqsa Mosque to secure the paths of the colonists. These measures also affected the commercial sector, as shop owners in the historic Qattaneen Market were forced to close their shops and were prevented from carrying out their normal work in order to provide calm to the invading groups.

Hebron

Settlers attacked citizens in Khirbet Safa in the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, and fired live bullets at them without causing any casualties.

The occupation forces also demolished facilities and destroyed agricultural lands in Khirbet Humsa, west of Hebron, demolished chains and uprooted a number of trees.

In Khirbet Aqawawis in Musafer Yatta, colonists vandalized property, while others stole a pigeon farm in the Khallet al-Hummus area.

In Masafer Bani Naim, colonists chased workers’ vehicles amidst gunfire, which led to one of the workers being injured, while others attacked a residence in the Huwwara area, east of Yatta.

In another escalation, the far-right Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, led a major storming in which hundreds of colonists participated in the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron.

Ramallah

The occupation authorities issued a military order targeting 56,026 dunums of land in the village of Kafr Malek, bearing the number 98/26, to remove wild plants and uproot olive trees from them, under the pretext of taking “security measures.”

The targeted lands are located along Road No. 449, south of the village, and the military order requires the land owners to carry out the removal within 7 days of a tour organized with them.

In the towns of Sinjil and Turmus Aya, colonists stole olives from a number of citizens’ lands located along the lands between the towns of Sinjil and Turmus Aya, and opposite the entrance to the town of Turmus Aya, near an occupation forces camp.

Others, protected by the occupation forces, also attacked an ambulance and stole agricultural equipment in the village of Al-Mughayir, causing material damage to it. They also stole agricultural equipment during their raid on a sheep farm west of the village.

In another attack in the village of Al-Mughayir, colonists burned two vehicles and wrote racist slogans.

In the village of Beit Ur al-Fawqa, the occupation forces uprooted dozens of olive trees and bulldozed forest lands and trees in the vicinity of the military occupation checkpoint. They also distributed a notice to bulldoze 29 dunums of citizens’ lands planted with trees.

In the village of Rantis, colonists burned three vehicles, before the residents confronted them and forced them to leave, and wrote racist slogans on the walls of a number of houses.

In the village of Barqa, colonists stormed agricultural land and released their livestock among the olive trees, causing damage to the olive trees.

The occupation forces bulldozed large areas of land and uprooted hundreds of perennial olive trees in the town of Beit Rima, on an area of ​​31 dunums.

In the town of Beitunia, large numbers of colonists stormed, at eight in the morning, the “Griot” roundabout area in the center of the town, to hold Talmudic rituals, coinciding with the celebration of Jewish holidays.

Nablus

Colonists attacked a group of young men and seized their vehicle in the Al-Arma area in Beita, south of Nablus, while others burned two houses in the village of Jalud, south of Nablus, and tried to burn a school, but the residents confronted them and prevented them from doing so.

Others attacked a number of citizens’ homes with stones on the outskirts of the village of Qaryut, south of Nablus, where they assaulted an elderly woman and tried to burn her house.

Salfit

Colonists prevented farmers in the town of Deir Istiya from reaching their lands to pick olives, in the Al-Maareed area, west of the town.

In the town of Qarawat Bani Hassan, colonists stormed the town's playground and forced the young men inside it to leave it at gunpoint.

In the town of Kifl Haris, dozens stormed the town under heavy protection from the occupation forces, raided Islamic religious shrines in the center of the town, performed Talmudic rituals, and deliberately destroyed all citizens’ property on their way.

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Settlers stole olives from the lands of Khirbet Masoud, south of Jenin, after storming the lands of Khirbet Masoud accompanied by agricultural tractors, while the so-called “Northern West Bank Settlements Council” announced the organization of a major march last Wednesday between the “Ganim” and “Kadim” settlements, within the framework of “Throtch Day activities,” with the participation of large numbers of colonists.