Israeli military plans to transfer law enforcement in occupied West Bank to police
Summary
Israel’s defence minister wants to give the police control over law enforcement for Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank instead of the military. This move has drawn criticism from Palestinian leaders and rights advocates, who see it as a step toward officially taking over Palestinian land. Clashes continue in the West Bank, with settlers attacking Palestinian homes while the army struggles to intervene.Key Facts
- Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, ordered plans to transfer policing of Israeli settlers in the West Bank from the military to the police.
- Palestinians and their vice-president, Hussein al-Sheikh, called this a violation of international law and a move toward illegal annexation.
- Settlers have laid siege to Palestinian families in Qusra village for six days, with the Israeli army failing to remove them.
- Human rights lawyer Michael Sfard said transferring law enforcement responsibility could be a major step toward annexation.
- Extremist settlers supported by Israel’s far-right government have increased attacks and settlement building in the West Bank ahead of national elections.
- Katz celebrated the re-establishment of the Ganim settlement, which Israel had evacuated in 2005.
- The Israeli army has blocked Palestinian access roads leading to some settlements by leveling Palestinian property.
- US Ambassador Mike Huckabee called the settlers besieging a Palestinian home owned by a US citizen terrorists and urged Israeli authorities to act.
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