Israeli Knesset pushes for West Bank sovereignty - World - Al-Ahram Weekly

Al-Ahram Weekly

30-07-2025

A resolution of the Israeli Knesset has called for the application of Israeli sovereignty over the occupied West Bank in a move seen as a further step towards annexation, writes Monjed Jadou in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
In a move widely condemned by Palestinian leaders as a serious escalation and a direct threat to any remaining hopes for a Palestinian state, the Israeli Knesset last week approved a non-binding declarative resolution to apply Israeli sovereignty over the Occupied West Bank.
The declaration refers to the areas of 'Judea and Samaria' and the Jordan Valley, terms used by the Israeli authorities for Palestinian land occupied since 1967.
The resolution passed by a vote of 71 in favour to 13 against in a politically charged session aimed at reinforcing Israel's right-wing annexation agenda. It signals the Israeli Coalition Government's intention to reshape the situation on the ground, amid growing international inertia.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) strongly denounced the decision, describing it as a 'declaration of war' against Palestinian rights and the effective end of any political horizon based on a two-state solution.
'This resolution reveals the true face of the occupation government,' said Palestinian Presidential Spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh. 'It demonstrates their absolute rejection of peace and their commitment instead to expanding settlements and deepening apartheid policies on the ground.'
Hamas also condemned the move as a 'direct assault' on Palestinian land and called for increased resistance against what it labelled 'creeping annexation.'
On the ground, Palestinians expressed growing concern that the declaration could pave the way for accelerated settlement construction, home demolitions, and forced displacement, particularly in Area C of the West Bank.
Ahmed Subh, head of the Political Committee of Fatah's Revolutionary Council, told Al-Ahram Weekly that while the resolution lacks legal enforcement, it continues a pattern of Israeli measures aimed at de facto annexation.
'This is not the first step,' Subh said. 'It follows the 2018 Jewish Nation-State Law, which asserts that the right to self-determination in historic Palestine belongs solely to Jews.'
He added that since the current Israeli government took office in 2023, it has openly pursued what it calls 'decisive military action' to eliminate the Palestinian cause. This includes the ongoing war in Gaza, intensifying attacks in the northern West Bank, and a crackdown on civil liberties inside Israel.
Subh warned that these policies, including this latest declaration, aim to forcibly displace Palestinians and create a land 'without its people.'
Area C, which makes up roughly 60 per cent of the West Bank, is under full Israeli military and civil control. It contains the majority of Israeli settlements, bypass roads, agricultural land, and natural resources.
Legal experts and political analysts consider the Knesset's resolution to be a clear breach of international law, including UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 2334, and the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit an occupying power from transferring its population into occupied territory.
Observers say that the declaration lends political legitimacy to Israel's longstanding strategy of settlement expansion and territorial control. They warn of increased home demolitions, especially in the Jordan Valley, Khirbet Humsa, and Khan Al-Ahmar, as well as the continued denial of Palestinian construction permits.
The resolution is expected to solidify plans to expand Israeli infrastructure, effectively isolating Palestinian communities into disconnected enclaves.
Mohamed Al-Taj, a senior member of the Palestinian Liberation Front (PLF), called the Knesset's vote a dangerous step towards the full erasure of the Palestinian cause.
'This is not merely a symbolic act,' he told the Weekly. 'It is a structured attempt to turn a temporary occupation into permanent sovereignty, undermining any hope of a two-state solution and institutionalising apartheid.'
He described the move as 'a legal veneer for ongoing settlement expansion, ethnic cleansing, and silent displacement.'
SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES: Although the resolution is not legally binding, analysts say its political implications are profound. It reveals the current Israeli government's determination to pursue the 'Greater Israel' project and destroy any future negotiating framework.
The vote follows a series of gradual steps, including the controversial transfer of the Israeli Civil Administration's powers to a government minister responsible for settlements, described by critics as 'silent annexation.'
Human rights activist Munther Amira, who focuses on community resilience, warned that even symbolic declarations could result in serious consequences for international development work.
'For years, Area C has been both a target of Israeli restrictions and a focus of donor-funded humanitarian efforts,' he said. 'With each Israeli step towards de facto sovereignty, these projects, often related to agriculture, education, and infrastructure, are jeopardised.'
If the Knesset's declaration leads to concrete enforcement, Israel could ban foreign aid workers, confiscate equipment, and demolish donor-funded facilities, claiming these activities are unauthorised under Israeli law.
'In January 2021, for example, Israeli forces demolished an EU-funded school in Zanouta near Hebron, citing a lack of permits,' Amira recalled. 'Solar panels and water systems in the Jordan Valley have also been seized, even when part of humanitarian relief programmes.'
In Khirbet Humsa in the northern Jordan Valley, families were repeatedly evicted, and shelters provided by international NGOs were torn down. The UN at the time described the action as 'the largest forced displacement in over a decade.'
Amira, also an activist with the PA's Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, says Palestinians have for years faced the demolition of agricultural projects, the confiscation of water networks, and the destruction of model farms in the Jordan Valley and in Khirbet Susiya south of Hebron.
But the Knesset's latest declaration applying Israeli 'sovereignty' over the West Bank marks a dangerous shift, he said, from a quiet policy to a formal political strategy.
'If this resolution is used as a legal cover to increase pressure on Area C, it will amount to the systematic elimination of Palestinian development,' Amira told the Weekly. 'It will deny communities the right to remain, grow, and access basic services, violating international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions, which require occupying powers to protect civilian infrastructure, not destroy it.'
He warned that the move threatens the future of hundreds of internationally funded projects across Area C and poses a direct challenge to the very survival of Palestinian communities already vulnerable to displacement.
LAND DISAPPEARING: As Israel presses forward with its settlement enterprise and legal groundwork for annexation, the international community has remained largely mute.
While the UN and the European Union have reiterated their commitment to a two-state solution and opposition to unilateral actions, major powers such as the United States have yet to issue a formal condemnation – an absence that many observers say is emboldening Israel to proceed unchecked.
On the ground, the situation is deteriorating rapidly. There is mounting fear that the West Bank could become a second Gaza, isolated, besieged, and politically cut off, under a creeping annexation campaign cloaked in legality.
Palestinians fear the resolution could be a precursor to binding legislation that formally annexes the West Bank, similar to previous Israeli moves regarding East Jerusalem and the Occupied Golan Heights.
If that happens, Palestinian leaders say they may be forced to withdraw from the Oslo Accords, suspend security coordination with Israel, and call for a national conference to redefine Palestinian-Israeli relations.
Grassroots resistance could also escalate, amid growing public anger over what many describe as the open theft of land in full view of the international community.
Analysts and politicians interviewed by the Weekly agreed: diplomatic appeals alone are no longer enough, they said, calling for immediate, coordinated action on the ground and urging international institutions to back their statements with concrete measures to hold Israel accountable.
Subh stressed that the primary Palestinian response must be to 'strengthen resilience, remain steadfast, and exercise the right to self-defence and resistance.' He urged the Arab states to reassess their relationships with Israel, warning that normalisation 'has brought security to no one and only rewarded the occupier.'
'Any complacency in dealing with Israel is a betrayal of the sacrifices of our people. We need unity, comprehensive national dialogue, and the firm rejection of forced displacement. We appreciate the Egyptian and Jordanian positions in this regard,' he said.
Al-Taj said that 'the real danger lies in how Israel uses legal declarations as a shield for expansionist policies, with no political cost and little international pushback. The silence of the Arab World and the retreat of official Palestinian diplomacy have only made this easier.'
He called for an urgent Arab response on all levels, legal, diplomatic, and popular, to stop the annexation plan in its tracks. 'This is not just about Palestine,' he warned. 'It is about regional stability and the risk of a wider conflict.'
Back on the ground, Amira remains focused on documenting Israeli violations and reinforcing vulnerable Palestinian communities.
'Israel has been annexing the West Bank on the ground for years,' he said. 'This latest declaration is simply a formal preview of what has already become a reality – settler violence, bypass roads, and land seizures are carving up Palestine piece by piece.'
'If the international community still believes in a two-state solution, now is the time to act. We need work, not words. Because in this moment, all of us, and all of Palestine, are being targeted.'
* A version of this article appears in print in the 6 August, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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