Israel expands 1984 ‘state land’ declaration to include 48 acres in West Bank

Israeli authorities have redrawn the boundaries of a 42-year-old "state land" declaration in the occupied West Bank, adding nearly 194 dunams (48 acres) of Palestinian land near the villages of Jalud and Al-Mughayyir, an official Palestinian government agency said Tuesday.

The Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission said Israel's "Blue Line Team" approved the inclusion of 193.93 dunams (47.9 acres) in the declaration originally issued in 1984.

The revision also removed 15.07 dunams (3.72 acres) from the previous boundaries and left 1,433.85 dunams (354 acres) unchanged, resulting in a net increase of approximately 179 dunams (44 acres), the commission said.

The measure does not automatically mean expanding the settlement's area of influence, but it makes the added land available for possible planning or allocation procedures at later stages.

Jalud is located southeast of Nablus, while Al-Mughayyir is northeast of Ramallah, in an area witnessing continuous expansion of illegal settlements and outposts, along with restrictions on the use of agricultural land and grazing areas, according to the commission.

The commission said this move is part of a broader strategy in which Israeli authorities employ various tools to control Palestinian land, including declarations of "state land" and "government property," confiscation and expropriation orders, and modifications to settlement jurisdiction areas and the redrawing of their boundaries.

In August, the commission reported that Israeli authorities declared approximately 1,152 dunams (284 acres) of land belonging to Sinjil, Al-Lubban ash-Sharqiya and Qaryut as "government property," with the aim of expanding the Karmei Oz settlement and strengthening the geographical contiguity between settlements and outposts in the area between northern Ramallah and southern Nablus.

Israeli settlements established in the occupied West Bank are considered illegal under international law.