Israel is moving ever closer to the mass expulsion of Palestinians from the West Bank. The Israeli government has approved the registration of large swathes of land in the occupied West Bank as “state property,” a measure widely seen as further entrenching de facto annexation of Palestinian territory, reported Middle East Eye. The proposal, submitted by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, and Israel Katz, the defence minister, was approved on Sunday.
The measure is expected to formalise Israeli control over extensive areas of Palestinian land, much of which has remained unregistered since Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967. It would allow authorities to legalise the confiscation of unregistered, or so-called abandoned, land by reclassifying it as “state land.”
In comments carried by Wafa news agency, the Palestinian presidency condemned the move as a “dangerous escalation” amounting to “de facto annexation of the occupied Palestinian territory.” The statement said the decision effectively nullifies existing agreements and violates a series of UN Security Council resolutions, particularly resolution 2334, which affirms the illegality of settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem.
Hamas denounced the measure as an attempt “to steal and Judaise lands in the occupied West Bank” and described it as “null and void” by what it called an illegitimate occupying power. The move was also condemned by several regional states, including Jordan, Qatar, and Turkey.
The Israeli decision, not surprisingly, is raising alarm in Jordan. MEE notes that for decades, Amman has feared the mass displacement of Palestinians from the West Bank. But analysts say its concern is no longer limited to “creeping annexation” or gradual land seizures. Instead, the latest measures—which Jordan has described as null and void—are seen as the start of a “total annexation” phase, threatening not just the geography of the West Bank but the very core of Jordan’s national security.
“This measure represents a leap across strategic stages,” Omar al-Ayasrah, a member of Jordan’s Senate, the upper house appointed by the king, told MEE. “They aim to completely remove Jordan’s influence on the Palestinian cause and the legal protections for Arab landowners, opening the door to ‘legalise’ their transfer to the occupation,” he added.
Jordan, already home to a large Palestinian refugee population, now fears fresh waves of displacement that could destabilise its internal security and impose severe economic and social strain. That is why, according to Ayasrah, the real battle is demographic.
“Suffocating the Palestinians’ geographic space and crippling their economy by seizing land and farms is a prelude to what we call ‘soft transfer’,” he said. “This systematic pressure, coupled with the absence of a political horizon and soaring unemployment, is designed to push Palestinians towards emigration—a scenario Amman views as a nightmare striking at its national security.
