RAMALLAH, January 24, 2025 (WAFA) - Colonists established a new pastoral outpost near the colony of Shilo, built illegally on Palestinian land northeast of Ramallah.
Israeli media reported that Avichai Suissa, the director of the colonial organization Hashomer Yosh, along with several colonists, set up a pastoral outpost near the Shilo colony. The outpost included a livestock barn, 20 dunums of land that were planted with olive saplings, a tractor and other agricultural equipment.
The media further noted that the Hashomer Yosh organization and its director were added to the list of sanctions imposed by the previous U.S. administration under President Joe Biden for their involvement in attacks and terrorist activities against Palestinians and their property.
The mayor of Turmus Aya stated that colonists have intensified their attacks on Palestinian lands in the town since October 7, 2023, coinciding with the aggression on the Gaza Strip.
He explained that the new colonial outpost is located on Palestinian lands east of the town, which fall in Area B, under Palestinian civil control and Israeli military control.
He further stated that the Israeli occupation restricts citizens' access to thousands of dunums of lands surrounding the town. He highlighted that, during the previous olive harvest season, residents were unable to harvest olives from approximately 4,000 dunums of land in the Al-Sahl area, as well as from other lands that had been seized by colonists or were located near colonies.
One day after taking the oath of office as President of the United States, Donald Trump reversed the executive order signed by President Biden in February 2024, which had facilitated the inclusion of the Hashomer Yosh organization, its director and several other colonists and colonial organizations on the U.S. sanctions list.
The sanctions targeted around 60,000 colonists holding U.S. citizenship, and included a provision to freeze all their assets in the United States. Additionally, the sanctions imposed a ban on conducting business with entities subject to these restrictions.
In 2024, for the first time since the Oslo Accords, Peace Now’s Settlement Watch team documented the establishment of at least seven outposts deep within Area B.
The United Nations considers Israeli colonization to be illegal and calls for its cessation, warning that it undermines the prospects for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on the two-state solution principle.
Colonial activities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, have witnessed a marked increase since the current right-wing government, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, assumed power in December 2022.
Colonists established 51 new colonial outposts in 2024, 36 of which took the form of pastoral outposts in the governorates of Ramallah and Al-Bireh, Bethlehem, Hebron, Nablus, Jerusalem, Tubas, Jericho, Salfit and Tulkarm, according to the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission.
The Commission stated that the Israeli authorities have begun the process of legalizing 13 colonial outposts, some of which are expected to be eventually transformed into colonial neighborhoods or full-fledged colonies. This is being carried out through government decisions and modifications to the boundaries of existing colonies.
T.R.
