Two Official Announcements to Expand Settlements
The Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Authority announced on Monday that Israeli authorities issued two announcements on October 18 to classify approximately 183 dunams of land in the towns of Beitir, Sa'ir, and Al-Shuyukh in the governorates of Bethlehem and Hebron, in the southern occupied West Bank, as "state land." According to the authority, the announcements bear the signature of the official for government and abandoned properties in the Israeli Civil Administration, and they come as part of procedures related to expanding settlements and giving legal status to settlement outposts.
Land Details and Classifications
Classifying land as "state land" means seizing it and managing it according to Israeli laws, which prevents owners from benefiting from it. The first announcement, registered under the name "Bar Kochba," covers 64.06 dunams of land in the town of Beitir within financial basins 12 and 13, and is linked to a settlement project previously known as "Nahal Hatzor," which started from the "Nofei Orot" agricultural outpost. The Israeli government approved the establishment of a settlement at the project site in June 2024, before its name was later changed to "Bar Kochba."
Procedures to Consolidate the Project
The second announcement, registered under the name "Bnei Kiddesh," covers 118.75 dunams of land in financial basins 4 and 20 in the town of Sa'ir, and financial basin 8 in the town of Al-Shuyukh. "Bnei Kiddesh" was a settlement outpost that was treated as a neighborhood belonging to the "Mitzad/Asfar" settlement, before the Israeli Cabinet Committee for Political and Security Affairs (the Cabinet) approved on December 11, 2025, to convert it into an independent settlement as part of a decision that included the establishment of 19 settlements.
Implications for Palestinian Geography
The authority considered that the two announcements reflect the integration of Israeli procedures aimed at expanding settlements through reclassifying land, defining areas of influence, and providing the necessary infrastructure. It pointed out that these procedures contribute to consolidating control over Palestinian land and providing additional space for settlement expansion, thereby limiting the potential for Palestinian land development and deepening the fragmentation of Palestinian geography. Since October 2023, the Israeli army and settlers have escalated their attacks in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, involving killings, arrests, displacement, home demolitions, land confiscation, and settlement expansion.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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