Ramallah, February 11, 2025 – The Colonization & Wall Resistance Commission has revealed that the occupation state has recently taken extremely dangerous steps to reinforce settler-colonialism thus fragmenting Palestinian geography. The head of the commission, Minister Mu’ayyad Sha’ban, stated that the occupation state has begun constructing a new colony in Bethlehem Governorate, specifically on the lands of Battir village, located between the towns of Husan and Al-Khader. The colony, named "Nahal Hilts," was approved as a direct response to the wave of international recognitions of the State of Palestine in June of last year. Following the decision to establish this colony, the occupation state took several steps, starting with the allocation of 120 dunums for
the new colony, followed by the "Blue Line" team's decision to designate an additional 600 dunums for its construction. Currently, actual construction has commenced.
Mr. Sha’ban warned that the establishment of this colony is intended to deepen the separation between Bethlehem and Jerusalem Governorates, as a step towards the gradual implementation of the "Greater Jerusalem" plan, which threatens the geographic continuity between the northern and southern West Bank.
Mr. Sha’ban added that the so-called "Custodian of Governmental Property" in the occupation state's so-called “Civil Administration” issued six military orders yesterday, allocating a total of 16,200 dunums for what is being labelled "pastoral activity" for colonizers. He explained that the occupation state is not only encouraging the establishment of agricultural and pastoral outposts but is also actively protecting them by officially allocating vast areas of land to colonizer militias.
Mr. Sha’ban stated that these orders effectively prevent Palestinian shepherds from accessing these lands while granting colonizers full authority over them. The first military order targeted the lands of Salfit and Ramallah Governorates, specifically the villages of Deir Ballut and Al-Lubban Al-Gharbi, allocating 2,600 dunums for settler grazing. These areas had previously been declared "state land". The second, third, and fourth orders targeted Ramallah Governorate, allocating 1,505 dunums in Kafr Malik and 4,900 dunums in Deir Jarir for the same purpose. The fifth order targeted Al-Far'a Valley in Jericho Governorate, allocating 426 dunums, while the sixth order allocated 8,700 dunums in Tubas.
Mr. Sha’ban emphasized that this step is part of the occupation government's repeatedly declared plan to "legalize" 70 agricultural and pastoral colonial outposts as part of coalition agreements between its ruling parties. He warned that allocating land for colonizer grazing would solidify these outposts by granting them vast areas, turning them into bases for further terrorist attacks against Palestinian citizens and their properties. By the end of 2024, the number of pastoral outposts had reached 137, blocking access to a total of 489,000 dunums of Palestinian land.
He concluded by stating that the occupation state is pressing forward with imposing realities on Palestinian geography that will fragment the land and create isolated enclaves, ultimately eliminating any possibility of establishing a future Palestinian state. He stressed that these actions are not only gross violations of basic human rights and an assault on the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people but also a direct challenge to international law, UN resolutions, and the declared legal positions of the international community.