Palestinians condemn Israeli bill to legalise settler units

Israeli court rejects government petition to postpone demolition of a West Bank settlement built on Palestinian land.

The global community considers all Israeli settlements in occupied east Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank to be illegal, whether they are authorized by the government or not.

On Sunday, a government committee agreed upon a bill that will reportedly stop mosques from using PA systems during their calls to prayer throughout the day, The Times of Israel noted. In 2006, Israeli police demolished nine homes at Amona, setting off clashes with settlers.

On Monday, the high court rejected government appeals for a delay and gave the Israeli military until December 25 to clear the settlement.

Mansour said that while the Palestinian Authority could not respond to a move of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem with a Security Council resolution – because the United States would veto it – there were actions that he could take.

The bill was presented to the Ministerial Law Committee on Sunday, 12 Cheshvan, and it was approved by the ministers.

The draft legislation was opposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called the move “childish and irresponsible”.

The muzzein bill and a bill that would legalize some West Bank outposts, “will drag the region into a catastrophe”, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for PA President Mahmoud Abbas, told Palestinian media. But critics, including Obama, have said that continued Israeli settlement on occupied territories have undercut this goal, and the Obama administration has at times questioned Netanyahu’s commitment to seeking peace.

It also, said Mandelblit, threatened to create a constitutional crisis by attempting to overturn court rulings.

Israel’s long-time ally, the USA, also condemned the bill, calling it an “unprecedented and troubling” step in a statement on Monday.

However, peace talks have stalled since 2014.

“Israel needs to decide whether it wants to build more settlements or prefers to advance the two-state solution”, Trudeau said.

An Israeli ministerial committee has voted unilaterally to “legalise” settlements on occupied land condemned as illegal by the global community.

The Amona outpost, where at least 40 Israeli families reside, was slated for demolition in 2008 after the Israeli Supreme Court ruled in favor of Palestinians whose private land the settlement outpost was built on.

Before becoming law, the bill will have to pass through three readings in parliament, and also be approved by the Supreme Court. But so far, the Israeli courts have maintained that outposts built by settlers without governmental approval are illegal.