LONDON, September 3, 2026 (WAFA) — Amnesty International said today that Israel’s recent decisions to seize Palestinian land reflect an expansion of its agenda and policies aimed at annexing the occupied West Bank to Israel.
In a statement, the organization said Israel’s continued occupation of the West Bank and seizure of Palestinian land were accelerating the annexation of the territory, while Israel continues to take control of additional land and establish illegal settlements.
Amnesty said Israel’s seizure of land under the control of the State of Palestine disregards the rights of Palestinians living under occupation. It noted that in July alone, the Israeli army seized 15 plots of land covering a combined 20 hectares.
The organization said Israel plans to build two of the 34 illegal settlements it decided to establish this year specifically in these areas. It added that Israel is establishing military bases through the seizure of privately owned Palestinian land and targeting Palestinian Bedouin communities and herders.
Amnesty also warned that a road Israel plans to build to serve illegal settlements in Jenin would isolate the governorate from other Palestinian population centers.
Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said Israel had, for the first time, seized Palestinian land classified as Area A under the Oslo Accords.
“Recent seizure orders targeting Area A clearly reveal how Israel is recklessly expanding its annexation agenda into areas that have been under Palestinian control since the Oslo Accords,” Morayef said.
She called on states with close trade and political ties to Israel to exert pressure to revoke the seizure orders.
“Any state that supports Israel in expanding its illegal settlements or other war crimes risks becoming complicit in international crimes committed against Palestinians,” she said.
Morayef said the roads Israel plans to construct threaten Palestine's territorial integrity and economic integration while imposing further restrictions on Palestinians' freedom of movement.
She described the measures as evidence of “a determination by Israeli authorities to intensify the formal annexation of Palestinian land throughout the occupied West Bank.”
“By occupying Palestinian land and expanding illegal settlements, Israeli institutions are deepening their violations of long-standing international law,” she added.
Morayef called on the international community to take concrete steps, including ending partnerships, economic projects with Israel, and trade relations with Israeli settlements built on Palestinian land.
She also urged the private sector to refrain from profiting from these human rights violations.
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