Ramallah, October 2, 2024: The Head of the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, Minister Mo’ayyad Sha’ban, stated that the Israeli occupation army and its colonizers carried out 1344 attacks last September. This is a continuation of the ongoing series of terror attacks by the occupation state against the Palestinian people, their land, and their property.
Mr. Sha’ban also clarified in the Commission’s monthly report, titled “The Israeli Occupation’s Violations and Colonial Expansion Measures”, that the occupation army carried out 1,110 attacks, while colonizers executed 234 attacks. Most of these assaults were concentrated in Hebron Governorate with 335 attacks, Ramallah Governorate with 174 attacks, and Jerusalem Governorate with 154 attacks.
Mr Sha’ban also pointed out that the attacks ranged from armed assaults on Palestinian villages to the imposition of facts on the ground, field executions, vandalism, land leveling, uprooting of trees, seizing of property, and closures and checkpoints that fragment Palestinian geography.
Dangerous Escalation of Colonizers' Attacks and Uprooting of Hundreds of Trees
Mr Sha’ban noted that colonizers’ attacks were concentrated in Hebron Governorate with 85 attacks, Ramallah Governorate with 53 attacks, and Nablus Governorate with 41 attacks. He added that colonizers carried out 245 acts of vandalism and theft of Palestinian property, affecting vast areas of land, stealing 307 heads of sheep, and seizing 15 vehicles and tractors, often with the army's participation. Colonizers’ attacks also resulted in the uprooting of 699 trees, including 694 olive trees, in the governorates of Hebron, Salfit, Bethlehem, Nablus, Ramallah, and Tulkarm.
Mr Sha’ban further explained that the occupation’s plans aimed at displacing Palestinians and imposing a coercive environment are being executed by arming colonizers, granting them immunity and training, in addition to what the official agencies of the Israeli occupation state are doing, such as storming cities and villages, conducting executions, systematically destroying infrastructure, starving the population, and intensifying the imposition of collective punishment on Palestinians. These actions have crossed many red lines. If it were not for international silence and the shameful double standards, the Israeli occupation would not have continued committing these horrific crimes in full view of the entire world, which contently remains silent and complicit.
Mr Sha’ban warned of pre-planned schemes coordinated between the Israeli occupation army and colonizers to attack unarmed Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest season. He added that past seasons witnessed dangerous waves of terrorism under the protection of the army, aimed at sabotaging the harvest and preventing citizens from accessing their lands. He called on the masses of our people to organize the largest support and protection campaigns to thwart the colonizers' plans, which were backed by the occupation state.
Establishment of 4 New Colonial Outposts
Mr Sha’ban pointed out that since the beginning of last September, colonizers established four new colonial outposts, primarily agricultural and pastoral in nature. These outposts were distributed with one on the lands of Bethlehem Governorate, one in Nablus Governorate, another in Jericho Governorate, and the last in Ramallah Governorate. Mr Sha’ban also confirmed that the decision to establish these outposts comes under directives from within the Israeli occupation's cabinet, which sponsors the settler-colonial project and facilitates colonizers' militia plans to seize land and carry out forced displacement. The occupation government later volunteers to turn these measures into a reality.
857 Dunums of Citizens' Lands Seized
Mr Sha’ban stated that the Israeli occupation authorities seized a total of 857 dunums of Palestinian land in September through 10 military orders for "military and security purposes," affecting lands in the governorates of Tubas, Tulkarm, Hebron, Nablus, Qalqilya, and Jericho. The largest of these was a military order targeting over 630 dunums of land in Tubas Governorate under the pretext of expanding a military base established on citizens' lands in the area. The military orders aimed to impose new facts on the ground under the guise of security and military purposes.
Mr Sha’ban added that the military orders issued in September were intended to create two buffer zones around the Kedumim colony in Qalqilya Governorate and Yitzhar colony in Nablus Governorate, along with a series of security roads the occupation authorities plan to establish for the benefit of colonizers and the army.
Mr Sha’ban pointed out that the Israeli occupation authorities issued an order to expand the areas under the influence of the Tana Omarim colony, established on lands in the southern Hebron Governorate, by adding more than 200 dunums from areas previously confiscated. He explained that this expansion aims to further entrench the fragmentation measures the occupation state deliberately imposes on Palestinian geography everywhere, isolating Palestinian communities and enhancing connectivity between colonies.
Demolition of 116 Facilities and Notifications to Demolish 30 Others
Mr Sha’ban noted that the Israeli occupation authorities carried out 100 demolitions last September, marking a significant and dangerous escalation in attacks on Palestinian buildings. He explained that 116 facilities were demolished, including 36 inhabited homes, 13 uninhabited homes, and 56 agricultural and other facilities. The demolitions were concentrated in Hebron Governorate, where 68 facilities were destroyed, followed by Jerusalem with 21 demolitions, and Ramallah with 8 demolitions. Mr Sha’ban also mentioned that the occupation authorities issued 30 demolition notifications for Palestinian facilities, mainly in the Salfit Governorate with 23 notifications, followed by Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Ramallah.
Planning for a New Colony
Mr Sha’ban revealed that planning authorities in the Israeli occupation state reviewed a total of 20 master plans (approval and deposit) last September, aiming to expand colonies in the West Bank and Jerusalem. These included the approval of 11 master plans, with 9 additional plans under review. The plans targeting the West Bank aim to build a total of 1,131 colonial units on an estimated 898 dunums of Palestinian land. Meanwhile, the plans for Jerusalem aim to build 1,620 colonial units on an estimated 106 dunums of Palestinian land.
Mr Sha’ban also disclosed the occupation's intention to establish a new colony on lands west of Ramallah, specifically in the villages of Ni'lin and Al-Midya, under the pretext of expanding the Ganei Modi'in colony. However, upon reviewing the maps of the plans and the files attached to them, it became clear that the occupation intends to build a new colony that is geographically distant from the announced colony and is even separated from the colony by the Annexation and Expansion Wall, built on the lands of the region.