Israeli settlers on July 23 seized over 50 dunams of land across the West Bank, official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported. In the Tubas area of the Jordan Valley, settlers seized nearly 50 dunams of land and began preparing to farm it, village council head Aref Daraghmeh said. The land, which belongs to villagers, was previously used by the Israeli army as a tank yard. Settlers apparently took it over with no interference from the IDF as they abandoned it.

In Hebron, settlers from Susiya settlement seized five dunams of private Palestinian land near the town of Yatta, popular committee coordinator Rateb al-Jabour said. Settlers, under the protection of Israeli soldiers, invaded the land and set up a power generator as part of plans to use the land for settlement expansion.

The dunam, a measurement unit dating back to the Ottoman era, is equivalent to 1,000 square meters. (Ma'an News Agency, July 24)

An international conference of non-aligned countries scheduled to take place in Ramallah Aug. 5 was canceled after Israel barred the entrance of four delegations from Jordan to the Palestinian territories.

The foreign ministers of Cuba, Indonesia, Malaysia and Bangladesh requested to enter the West Bank through the Allenby crossing, but were refused entry because their countries do not recognize Israel. (YNet, Aug. 5)

Unknown vandals sprayed the words "Migron Price Tag" on a mosque in the village of Imrish near Hebron. IDF forces patrolling the area discovered the graffiti Sept. 12, which was likely sprayed two days earlier.

Last week, unknown assailants burned the door of the Latrun Monastery and sprayed hate messages on the scene including "Jesus is a monkey" and "Ramat Migron." Police and Shin Bet launched an investigation. (YNet, Sept. 12)

The Israeli government is fighting in court to clear construction of  more than 40 West Bank settlements on private Palestinian land expropriated for military purposes. The case brought by Israeli human rights group Yesh Din challenges the non-enforcement of demolition orders for structures built in Beit El settlement.

In a submission to the court, the State Prosecution acknowledged that some 40 settlements were erected totally or partially based on such military expropriation orders—a practice ostensibly barred after the Elon Moreh ruling of 1979, which stipulated that the army had power to confiscate land only for pure military purposes, and not for civilian settlements. The state is now arguing that ruling "does not prevent exploiting the potential of these communities." (Haaretz, Sept. 13)

Electronic Intifada makes notes of an Oct. 7 Haaretz story:

Prominent rabbis, public officials and a Knesset member, on Saturday, held a send off for a criminal about to enter prison after being convicted of abusing a Palestinian youth.

The event was held in the West Bank Shilo settlement in honor of Zvi Struck, who was convicted of abusing a Palestinian youth in July 2007, together with another man whose identity remains unknown. The two beat the youth up, bound him, fired their guns close to him, undressed him and threw him naked at the roadside. Three months earlier the two men had beaten up the same youth and killed a day-old kid.

The Jerusalem District Court sentenced Struck to 18th months in prison, which the Supreme Court extended after an appeal to 30 months.

According to Haaretz, "The send off was led by Bnei Akiva yeshivas head Rabbi Haim Drukman and Kiryat Arba Rabbi Dov Lior, Binyamin Council head Avi Ro’eh, his deputy Motti Yogev and MK [Knesset member] Arye Eldad."

The settler website, Israel National News (Arutz Sheva) posted video and a report of the party which featured live music, many children and families, and Struck himself warmly greeting people. In the video, supporters of Struck claim that "the judicial system believes the Arabs first." Itzak Shadmi, a settler leader, said that he was fundraising to support Struck's family.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas delivered a fiery speech at the opening of the General Assembly’s 67th session in New York, charging: “Israel is promising the Palestinian people a new catastrophe, a new Nakba."

Abbas began his speech by referring to the "catastrophic danger of the racist Israeli settlement of our country, Palestine." He asserted that in recent months, "attacks by terrorist militias of Israeli settlers have become a daily reality."

The stalemate in the peace process had led to the conclusion "that the Israeli government rejects the two-state solution," he said, adding that Israel's official positions "reveal to us small enclaves surrounded by large Israeli settlement blocs and walls, checkpoints and vast security zones and roads devoted to settlers."

He did say that "despite our real feelings of anger and disappointment," the PA continues to be committed to negotiations with Israel, and “there is still a chance–maybe the last–to save the two-state solution and to salvage peace.”  He affirmed his rejection of terrorism in all its forms, "particularly state terrorism."

Abbas said his renewed statehood bid was not aimed at delegitimizing Israel, “but rather to assert that the state of Palestine must be realized.” (JP, Sept. 30)

Ahead of the Israeli elections next January, a merger has been announced between the parties of the prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu of the right-wing Likud party, and the foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman of the far-right Yisrael Beiteinu. They are to contest the elections on a joint list, intending to become the largest bloc in the Knesset.

This development is decried by Israeli Arab MK Jamal Zahalka in The Guardian, in a Nov. 4 piece entitled "It's time for sanctions on Israel":

The alliance reflects a lunge to the right, at a time of greater extremism in Israeli politics. Previously, Lieberman was very much on the margins. When he became minister of transport, a minister in the Labour party resigned, refusing to sit at the same table with him.

After that, Lieberman became the foreign minister. Many thought this would provoke the ire of the international community. But he was warmly received in European capitals. If one had said 10 years ago that Lieberman would become foreign minister, one would have been accused of ignorance, if not of hostility and incitement against Israel.

Among the obvious outcomes of this new coalition is the fact that Likud has become more extremist, and Lieberman more influential and more dangerous. A few months ago Lieberman called for the toppling of President Mahmoud Abbas, despite the fact that the Palestinian leader has maintained the peace in the shadow of the occupation, and continues to pursue negotiations – even in the absence of an Israeli partner. Lieberman also called for economic, political and security sanctions on the Palestinian Authority after it began diplomatic moves to gain UN recognition for a Palestinian state.

Zahalka states that Lieberman espouses policies hostile to Arab citizens of Israel, who constitute 17% of the population. His party slogan is "No citizenship without loyalty"; he seeks to oblige Arabs citizens to declare loyalty to the Zionist state as a condition for citizenship, including the right to vote and become members of the Knesset. Central to Lieberman's program is official recognition for the annexation of Jerusalem and the West Bank settlements, in exchange for the "transfer" of major Arab population centers in Israel to Palestine.

Zahalka notes:

When Jörg Haider and his extreme right party entered the Austrian government, several European countries imposed sanctions.  Lieberman is far more dangerous than Haider. His stature is proof that extremism has come to dominate in Israel. Should the kind of politics that are rejected in Europe be accommodated in the Holy Land?

Good question.
 

Israel last week announced plans to build hundreds of new homes in East Jerusalem and the West Ban. The Land Administration on Nov. 5 published notices for bids to build 609 units in Pisgat Zeev and 606 units in Ramot in East Jerusalem, as well as 72 homes in the West Bank settlement of Ariel. (CNN, Nov. 11; Reuters, Nov. 6)

Dozens of Palestinian olive trees were cut down in the northern West Bank by presumed settler attackers on Nov. 7. Farmers found 100 olive trees cut down with chain saws in al-Sawiya, south of Nablus, local authorities reported.. "Racist slogans" were found scrawled on barrels in the field. (AFP, Nov. 7)

Settlers and Israeli security forces clashed Oct. 31, after two "illegal" structures at the new outpost Hasruga were leveled near the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar. One Haredi IDF soldier defecting as a result of the demolition. (Haaretz, Nov. 1)

Israeli athorities issued "closed military zone" orders for four West Bank villages  Nov. 11, barring 13 prominent activists in groups such as Anarchists Against the Wall, Ta’ayush, and the Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity Movement from entering. (972, Nov. 11)