Israel orders seizure of 26.5 dunums of land near Ramallah

Israeli authorities issued a military order on Oct. 28 to seize 26.473 dunums of land from three towns northwest of Ramallah, the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission said in a statement.

The order, numbered T/48/26, covers land belonging to Deir Nizam, Umm Safa and Atara and remains in effect until the end of 2028, the Commission said.

The seizure is meant for a route called the "Ataret–Neve Tzuf Emergency Route," which the Commission said would be built under a claim of "military purposes."

The Commission said the order gives the military commander exclusive possession of the land shown on attached maps, placing a strip of land from the three towns under military control.

Of the total area, 5.891 dunums, or about 22.3 percent, is classified by Israeli authorities as "state land," while the remaining 20.582 dunums falls outside that classification, the Commission said.

The Commission argued that combining both categories into a single route shows how land classification and military orders are used together to secure land for settlement infrastructure.

It said the corridor could strengthen links between settlements, outposts and expansions near the Ateret and Halamish settlements, also known as Neve Tzuf, and could restrict landowners' access to nearby plots depending on how the order is carried out.

The Commission noted that the order does not by itself transfer legal ownership, but said it raises basic questions about using military authority to entrench settlement infrastructure and extend control.

Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are considered illegal under international law, a position the United Nations has repeatedly upheld, though Israel rejects this view.

Land seizures and military orders in the West Bank have long been a source of Palestinian complaints and international concern.