CNN —Israel’s government has approved a large land seizure in the occupied West Bank – the biggest since the 1993 Oslo Accords set out a path for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, according to the Israeli rights group Peace Now.
The declaration covers a 1,270 hectare (3,138 acre) section of the Jordan Valley in the eastern West Bank near Jericho, the document from the Civil Administration shows.
Once land is designated as state land, Israel no longer recognizes it as privately owned by Palestinians.
Smotrich spoke about preventing the occupied West Bank from becoming a part of an independent Palestinian state, according to leaked audio of a speech he gave in June.
On Sunday, Israel sparked condemnation after the finance minister announced plans to legally recognize five unauthorized Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Persons:
CNN —, wasn’t, ”, Bezalel Smotrich, Smotrich, Israel
Organizations:
CNN, West Bank, Civil Administration, Israel, Israel’s Civil Administration, Peace, Planning, Israel’s, Defense Ministry, Higher Planning
Locations:
Oslo, Israel, Jordan, West Bank, Jericho, Palestinian