Israel Seizes Ibrahimi Mosque in West Bank
The move ends Hebron Protocol-era approvals and shifts construction and service decisions for the Jewish enclave to Israeli authorities, officials said.
- Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced Tuesday that Israel has stripped the Palestinian-run Hebron municipality of planning and construction powers over the Jewish enclave in Hebron and nearby holy sites.
- The Higher Planning Council finalized the move Monday night, ending planning arrangements established by the 1997 Hebron Protocol, signed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat as part of the Oslo peace process.
- Infrastructure and building approvals for the Jewish enclave will now be advanced through Israeli authorities, while the municipality in Hebron stops providing municipal services, including garbage collection, to the area.
- Officials described the decision as a response to European sanctions imposed on Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and settlement organizations regarding settlement activity and violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
- Defense Minister Israel Katz, who attended the ceremony in the Hebron Hills, stated Israel is setting facts on the ground to deepen sovereignty in Judea and Samaria amid ongoing operations in Gaza and Lebanon.
29 Articles
29 Articles
Rights group condemns Israeli moves to take over Hebron planning powers
Rights group condemns Israeli moves to take over Hebron planning powers Israeli rights group Peace Now has criticised the government's decision to assume planning and construction powers from the Palestinian Municipality of Hebron in areas linked to Israeli settlements and religious sites in the city. In a statement, the group said the move was "dangerous and irresponsible" and accused finance minister Bezalel Smotrich of attempting to "win a f…
Israel seizes Ibrahimi Mosque in West Bank
Israel has seized planning and construction powers at a Jewish and Muslim shrine in the occupied West Bank from Palestinian authorities, scrapping parts of an agreement in place since the 1990s, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Tuesday. Under the 1997 Hebron Agreement, Palestinians controlled planning and construction in the entire city, including the Jewish Tomb of the Patriarchs and the adjoining Muslim Ibrahimi Mosque. Hebron's Old C…
Foreign Ministry rejects Smotrich's claim he axed 1997 Hebron Accord with PA
Under the agreement, 80 percent of the city is under Palestinian control, and 20 percent – home to a small community of 800 Jewish settlers, alongside some 40,000 Palestinians – under Israeli rule. Planning and building powers in Hebron were transferred from the Palestinian municipality to Israel
Israel moves to tighten grip on Hebron and Ibrahimi Mosque area
The Palestinian presidency has warned that a decision announced by the far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to revoke parts of the Hebron agreements represents a dangerous escalation that threatens the political and legal status of the occupied West Bank city. The warning came on Tuesday after Smotrich announced the cancellation of planning and construction arrangements established under the Hebron Protocol, effectively stripping …
Israel seizes powers over flashpoint West Bank shrine from Palestinians
Israel has seized planning and construction powers at a Jewish and Muslim shrine in the occupied West Bank from Palestinian authorities, scrapping parts of an agreement in place since the 1990s, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Tuesday. Under the 1997 Hebron Agreement, Palestinians controlled planning and construction in the entire city, including the Jewish Tomb of the Patriarchs and the adjoining Muslim Ibrahimi Mosque. Hebron’s Old C…
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