Israel’s green light for West Bank land registry sparks outrage

Israel has approved a process to register land in the occupied West Bank as “state property,” prompting swift condemnation from Arab governments, the United Nations and the European Union, which warned the move would further entrench Israeli control and undercut prospects for a Palestinian state.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the measure, approved late Sunday, is meant to enable “transparent and thorough clarification of rights to resolve legal disputes” following what it called unlawful land registration in areas administered by the Palestinian Authority. The process will take place only in Area C, which makes up about 60% of the West Bank and is under Israeli security and administrative control.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar and Jordan criticized the step as illegal under international law. Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said the measure is “aimed at imposing a new legal and administrative reality in the occupied West Bank” that would undermine peace efforts in the region.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Israel to reverse the policy. He believes the measure is “destabilizing” and “unlawful,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The EU also urged a reversal. “This constitutes a new escalation after recent measures already aimed at extending Israeli control,” EU foreign affairs spokesman Anouar El Anouni said. “We reiterate that annexation is illegal under international law.”

The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority called for international intervention to prevent what it described as the de facto beginning of annexation and the erosion of the foundations for Palestinian statehood.

Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now labeled the step a “mega land grab.” Jonathan Mizrachi, the group’s co-director, said the move would allocate new resources to land registration and likely be used against Palestinians. “There was a lot of ambiguity regarding the land, and Israel decided now to deal with it,” he said, adding: “A lot of land that Palestinians consider theirs, they will find out it’s not theirs under this new registration process.”

The decision follows other measures approved last week by Israel’s security cabinet, backed by far-right ministers, to tighten control over parts of the West Bank administered by the Palestinian Authority under the Oslo accords. Those steps include allowing Jewish Israelis to buy West Bank land directly and permitting Israeli authorities to administer certain religious sites in areas nominally under Palestinian Authority control, moves that triggered additional international backlash.

Rights groups say settler violence against Palestinians has been rising across the West Bank. “We are witnessing rapid steps to change permanently the demography of the occupied Palestinian territory, stripping its people of their lands and forcing them to leave,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said recently.

Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts regarded as illegal under international law. Around 3 million Palestinians live in the territory, which Israel has occupied since 1967.

US President Donald Trump has opposed Israel’s annexation of the West Bank, saying stability there helps keep Israel secure. He has held off from directly criticizing the new measures, however, despite international outrage.

Separately, visiting German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged Lebanon to continue disarming Hezbollah to pave the way for an Israeli military withdrawal from Lebanese territory. Israel has kept up strikes and maintained troops in five areas of south Lebanon despite a November 2024 truce intended to end more than a year of hostilities with the Iran-backed group.

Lebanon’s army said last month it completed the first phase of a disarmament plan covering the area between the Litani River and the Israeli border. Steinmeier said his visit was about ensuring “both sides fulfil their obligations under the ceasefire agreement and that the disarmament of Hezbollah here in Lebanon continues, thereby creating the conditions for the Israeli army to withdraw from southern Lebanon.”

Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun said Beirut asked Germany to press Israel to implement the ceasefire and withdraw, and to assist the Lebanese army. Germany currently has 179 personnel serving in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon and has led UNIFIL’s maritime task force since 2021.

By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.