Israel is accelerating its efforts to reshape the demographic reality in the West Bank through intertwined legal and field tools that enhance control over the land and undermine what remains of the Oslo Accords, amidst declining opportunities for a political solution.
In this context, Al Jazeera correspondent Jivara Al-Badiri reports on the daily transformations experienced by Palestinians, where fragile stability is turning into forced displacement due to settler attacks supported by official measures that impose a new reality characterized by forced departure or confrontation.
Details of the Event
From a home that was once full of life, only traces of looting remain. The owner recounts how settlers stormed the place, removing doors and windows and seizing all its contents, sending a message that staying is no longer possible.
The family did not withstand the threat for long, despite their attempts to cling to the house. One resident states that they believed a temporary absence might alleviate the pressure, but the reality was harsher, as they returned to find everything had been looted, even the windows were not left behind.
This scene is repeated in areas classified as (B) according to the Oslo Accords, where Palestinian civil authorities overlap with Israeli security control, creating a fragile environment that allows settler attacks to escalate without effective deterrence.
According to the divisions of the agreement, 18% of the West Bank is under complete Palestinian control (Area A), while 21% falls under Palestinian civil authority and Israeli security (Area B), and Israel fully dominates 61% of the classified (C) lands.
Context and Background
However, these divisions, which formed the basis of the political process, are gradually eroding. Since October 7, 2023, Israel has demolished more than 4,200 homes and facilities in the West Bank as part of a broader effort to redraw the geography.
Years earlier, the separation wall contributed to fragmenting the West Bank, while settlements continued to expand, transforming into interconnected urban blocks that encroach on land and limit Palestinian expansion, in a scene that indicates a real collapse of the Oslo references.
Data reveals that the number of settlers has doubled from about 110,000 to over 540,000, alongside the establishment of dozens of new settlements and outposts, linking them with advanced road networks and infrastructure that serve the settlement presence.
Impact and Consequences
Settlers have also taken control of industrial areas, archaeological sites, and religious and natural locations, as part of tightening control over resources and vital spaces, enhancing a long-term presence that is difficult to dismantle in any future settlement.
At the beginning of the year, the Knesset approved the West Bank Land Settlement Law, a move that transferred the management of these lands from military orders to Israeli institutions, which experts consider a shift towards actual legal annexation.
Researcher Walid Habas states that Israel is not adding laws as much as it is abolishing the previous system to replace it with a complete Israeli system, considering that the conflict will intensify in area (C), which has begun to besiege Palestinian cities and prevent their expansion.
Regional Significance
In contrast, the Palestinian Authority faces increasing political and legal pressures amidst internal division and declining international support, limiting its ability to confront the rapidly changing realities on the ground.
Calls are increasing within the Palestinian arena to reorganize the internal house, with officials emphasizing the necessity to end the division, implement comprehensive reforms, and renew legitimacy through elections to keep pace with existing challenges.
Amid these transformations, the dream of a Palestinian state seems more distant, with the erosion of the geographical and political foundations upon which it stands, and every meter of land turning into an open battlefield.