PLO report: Israel's new settlement and isolation plans in the West Bank

The report published by the National Bureau for the Defense of Territories and Combating Settlement Activities affiliated with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) included evaluations of Israel's settlement activities in various parts of the West Bank.

The report noted that the Israelis, who usurped Palestinian lands in the cities of Ramallah and Al-Bira, tried to open the route numbered "463" and the route called "China Road" in order to rearrange the roads and transportation routes in coordination with the Israeli army.

It was stated that this plan aims to connect illegal settlement points around Telmon and Dolev settlements.

It was stated that the plans in question pose a threat to isolate 8 Palestinian villages, including Ras Kerker, El-Caniye, Deir Ammar and Beytillu, as well as Reyhan and Et-Tayra neighborhoods, from their surroundings in the south.

The report emphasized that the plans include the establishment of military points and checkpoints that prevent the movements of Palestinians and their access to vital institutions, including the Consultative Hospital and the American Arab University, and noted that activities to seize olive groves and water resources continue in this process.

The report stated that Israeli authorities are planning to establish a new illegal settlement named "Gad Natan" in the south of the West Bank, and it was stated that the plan aims to create a settlement connection extending in the direction of Hebron, Jerusalem and the Dead Sea.

The report emphasized that the project in question could cut the historical connection between Bethlehem and Hebron, and surround the surrounding villages, including Buteyr and Al-Welce, and turn them into closed cantons.

It was stated that the Israeli government approved the legalization of 6 illegal settlement points in the Gush Etzion settlement block and their transformation into independent settlements. It was also reported that final approval was given for the construction of 567 new houses in the towns of Es-Semu and Dura in Hebron.

The report stated that in the north of the occupied West Bank, Israeli authorities opened a tender for the construction of 400 new houses in order to expand the Karnei Shomron settlement in the east of Qalqilya.

It was stated that the plan aims to create a large settlement block connecting the inner parts of the West Bank to Israeli cities by combining the settlement in question with other settlements around it.

It was noted that the plan, which will result in the seizure of lands belonging to the towns of Azzun, Cinsafut and Kefr Lakif, will lead to the complete isolation of these towns and the prevention of their natural urban development.

According to Palestinian statistics, there are approximately 750 thousand Israelis who have usurped Palestinian lands in 156 illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and 360 illegal settlements established by Jewish groups and considered "illegal" according to Israeli laws.

Approximately 250 thousand of them live in 15 settlements established in occupied East Jerusalem.