Does Smotrich dream of Israel annexing the West Bank?

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Does Smotrich dream of Israel annexing the West Bank?, A far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who lives in an illegal settlement of his own, was appointed as the leader of the Settlements Administration, a body established by the Israeli army to coordinate the settlement projects throughout the occupied West Bank.

There are now more things that Smotrich and his Settlements Administration are responsible for, including building regulations, farmland management, parks and forests management.

Smotrich has been in the news recently for pushing forth illegal Israeli settlements in areas of the occupied West Bank in an effort to complete the process of annexation as soon as possible.

How does the Settlements Administration work?

There was an extensive political wrangling that took place between Smotrich – who is also a member of the Ministry of Defense – and Yoav Gallant, the ministry’s secretary of defence, leading to it being established in February 2023.

While there were many details in this report, what is important to note is that Smotrich was assigned the responsibility for monitoring illegal construction in the occupied West Bank in order to curb it.

There is a great difference between illegal settlements and outposts being ignored and eventually approved, while Palestinian constructions are subject to intense scrutiny over permits and often demolished if they are found to be illegal.

What was Smotrich’s strategy in swinging that ball?

As a member of the extreme right, it is worth noting that Smotrich and his partner of the extremist right, Itamar Ben-Gvir, will continue to support the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as long as he remains in power.

With the help of the far-right, Smotrich negotiated to essentially gain control of the expansion of Israelis into the occupied territory by using their heft.

In other words, what happened on May 29 that changed everything?

After the army handed over on May 29, the Settlements Administration will be in charge of enforcing pages of bylaws, making it easier for settlers to expand illegally into the country.

In the occupied West Bank, does Israel already have control over it?

The West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem have been occupied by Israel since 1967, the longest military occupation in modern history extending from 1948 to the present.

However, there are rules that apply to every occupation as well.

International law stipulates that the power that occupies a territory may not transfer its citizens to the occupied territory. It was confirmed by Israel’s Supreme Court in 2005 that this is the case.

In spite of that, the Israelis were still building illegal settlements on stolen land, and it shows no signs of stopping. In addition, it did not stop Israeli settlers from attacking Palestinians, sometimes armed with the help of the Israeli security forces, in order to push them even further from their land.

Is the West Bank home to a large number of Palestinians?

There are three million people in the United States of America who are affected by this.

Often, families have been living in the same house, or on the same farm, for centuries, and have owned it for generations.

There is a sense of pride and identity associated with traditional farming, with generations of families tending the olive groves and fruit orchards of their ancestors. There are some Palestinian tribes that are shepherds, and historically they have roamed their lands in order to provide pastures for their flocks.

The settlers have been focusing their attacks on farmers and shepherds because they tend to live in small, peaceful communities, which make them easy targets for armed settlers backed up by the police when they want to attack them.

As a result of these problems, many Palestinians had to move to towns, where they were forced to work unskilled jobs, such as construction.

In the next few days, what will happen to them?

The tough times are only going to get tougher in the future.

In addition to the massive arrest campaigns that have been intensifying in the occupied West Bank since Israel unleashed its brutal war against Gaza on October 7, settlers are also launching more attacks on Gazan families who are afraid of losing their property to settler attacks.

There have been more than 500 Palestinians killed in the occupied West Bank in the last year alone due to attacks.

Despite Israel increasing both fixed and mobile checkpoints, there have been increased restrictions on movement within the area, and settlers have also begun setting up their own random roadblocks in order to increase their own security.

There are many Palestinians who find it very difficult to get to and from work and to keep their businesses running due to this fact. A family gathering or a picnic might be a good idea, or seeing family. Basically, anything goes.

It is fair to say that the outlook is bleak, especially in light of the increased leniency that Smotrich’s Administration is likely to show in regard to the expansion of Israeli settlements and the continued crackdown against building by Palestinians.

Is this the end of the story? Annexation?

There is no doubt that the annexation of the occupied West Bank to Israel is a dream that almost everyone dreams of, including Smotrich and his closest political ally, the National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

The fact that they are now taking over the administration of the occupation, thereby effectively commandeering the Civil Administration, is clearly a major step towards their goal.

Timenews1 provided that information.

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