What are the implications of the Israeli expansion in the West Bank - opinion

• Published date: 21 April 2024
• Author: ALIZA PILICHOWSKI
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

This announcement largely escaped mainstream and even Israeli media but was highlighted by Arab media outlets around the world

As The Washington Post reported, "If Israel confiscates land around Jerusalem, all the way to the Dead Sea, there will be no future for a Palestinian capital in east Jerusalem," said Hamza Zubiedat, a land rights activist for the Ramallah-based Ma'an Development Center. "This is where a Palestinian capital was supposed to be located, according to the American and European talks." While Zubiedat's reaction wasn't factually accurate, it speaks to the Palestinian objection to Israeli expansion in the West Bank.

The American government strongly objects to Israeli building in the West Bank.

American long-held policy was not to state an opinion on the legality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Former president Donald Trump changed American policy, maintaining that settlements weren't inconsistent with international law. Current US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reversed American policy and declared that Israeli settlements are inconsistent with international law. Secretary Blinken recently said, "Our administration maintains a firm opposition to settlement expansion, and in our judgment, this only weakens – and doesn't strengthen – Israel's security."

Settlement legitimacy

The Israeli government maintains that settlement building is legal and encouraged. Israeli prime ministers from the Left, including David Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Rabin, to the Right, including Menachem Begin and Benjamin Netanyahu, considered the West Bank historic Jewish land. It is as much part of the land of Israel as Tel Aviv and Netanya – if not even more.

the West Bank are considered the heartland of historic Israel. Israel's long history on the land, its intrinsic connection to the region, and the absurdity of claiming that Jews are prohibited to live somewhere simply because they're Jews, lends legitimacy to Israeli expansion of settlements. No excuse nor justification needs to be given for Israeli settlements, just as none is given in response to Arabs who claim Jews can't live in Jaffa or Tel Aviv.

The US government and the European Union (EU) see a larger issue in rebuilding settlements than international law. The Americans believe the only solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the two-state solution. This plan envisions an Israeli and a Palestinian state living side by side, in peace. Settlements are built on the land the global...