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The Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee headed by MK Simcha Rothman is set to hold hearings on a legislative bill that would extend Israel’s Referendum Law to all of Judea and Samaria, in addition to the country’s territorial waters.

“The purpose of this hearing is to amend the territorial scope of the existing law to include Judea and Samaria, and to clarify that the geographical scope of the law also includes Israel’s territorial waters,” the Land of Israel Caucus co-chairs said.

The law is also expected to close the loophole that allowed then-Prime Minister Yair Lapid to sign an agreement in which Israeli territorial waters were ceded to Lebanon.

The heads of the Land of Israel Caucus, MKs Yuli Edelstein, Limor Son Har Melech and Simcha Rothman made several statements:

“There is a broad consensus in Israeli society and in the Knesset that a Palestinian state must not be established.”

“The statement we are making is clear: After October 7th, the State of Israel will not allow terrorist groups to endanger the security of our citizens by establishing a base of operations on or within our borders.

“The Israel Security Law seeks to amend the Referendum Law and to bring all areas of the historic Land of Israel and our territorial waters within the scope of the law.” We pray that they will be successful in enacting this long overdue measure.

Source:
Land of Israel Caucus Submits Bill to Extend Referendum Law to Judea, Samaria, by Hana Levi Julian/Jewish Press, December 18, 2024

Judea and Samaria leaders demanded Sunday that the IDF use the ‘Gaza model’ to empty their region of terrorists in light of the danger that this front could easily erupt at any time and cause loss of life that was preventable.

In a letter to the security cabinet, the heads of the Yesha Council and local regional councils said that terror hotspots in the Palestinian Authority should be cleared out en masse of their residents, much as the Israeli army has done in northern Gaza. It is clear that the PA is unable and/or unwilling to do so.

The letter said that the precarious security situation in the region was “the result of policies initiated under the Oslo Accords,” and said that “is within your power to change this, and it is your duty to do so.”

Source:
Settler leaders call on Israel to use ‘Gaza model’ to purge Judea & Samaria of terrorism, by Batya Jerenberg/World Israel News, December 17, 2024

The Israeli Supreme Court granted a petition by Arabs and the leftist organization ‘Yesh Din’ and ruled that the ‘Ein Anar’ complex in western Binyamin must be demolished.

The site, a tourist attraction with pools and ancient ruins around 2,000 years old, was renovated and maintained by local Israelis in the last decade. The judges noted that the pools were built with the assistance of the Binyamin Regional Council and its funds, necessitating the demolition.

The head of the Binyamin Regional Council and the chairman of the Yesha Council, Israel Ganz, criticized the court’s decision, stating: “The verdict wrongs all residents of the area, leaving only destruction. The judges have sided with extremist activists aiming to destroy Jewish settlements, 2,000-year-old antiquities, and natural sites in Judea and Samaria.”

Source:
Supreme Court orders historic site demolished in Binyamin region, by Israel National News, December 17, 2024

At the 24th annual conference of the Israeli Construction Center last week a panel was held discussing the state of construction in Judea and Samaria in the face of current challenges.

Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, opened the panel and said: “We are in a good situation. After October 7, everyone understands that settlement is the shield of the State of Israel. This is an opportunity we must not miss.”

Yair Shatbon, mayor of Ariel, said: “We need to tell the world that after October 7, we need to be in the full expanses of our land, and Judea and Samaria are not the back yard.”

Just yesterday, a general order was published extending urban renewal for the first time to Judea and Samaria. The order was given out by Major General Avi Blut, Commander of the Central Command, a move that imposes Israeli laws on the Jewish “settlements of the liberated territories” which are still considered officially a military occupation zone.

The potential for new urban renewal projects in Judea and Samaria is wide-ranging and amounts to tens of thousands of new and improved housing units.

The momentum for rapidly developing Judea and Samaria is right in front of our eyes. Between the general order issued, and the incoming Trump administration, along with the long-awaited application of Sovereignty, we look forward to significant and historic developments.

Sources:
Yossi Dagan: We Must Dare and Bring a Million More Residents to Judea and Samaria, by Yehuda Dov/VINnews, December 12, 2024

Goldknopf Extends Urban Renewal to Judea and Samaria Ushering In Thousands of Housing Units, by David Israel/Jewish Press, December 16, 2024

The IDF is planning to install numerous remote firing platforms to safeguard villages in Judea and Samaria from Palestinian attacks.

The “Shoot on Sight” systems, which are already being produced, consist of an observation tower strewn with cameras and intelligence-collection equipment and a firing system that soldiers can control remotely, thereby minimizing the operators’ contact with the enemy.

Female observers of Unit 636, the intelligence collection unit of the Judea and Samaria Division, will be trained to use the systems. In case of need, they will also be able to fire manually at terrorists attempting to infiltrate the Jewish communities, the report said.

In Judea and Samaria specifically, the regional council heads have begged for years for the IDF to be proactive instead of reactive, considering the danger that the Palestinian Authority poses to their communities.

New security technology is fine and welcome but having solid security measures in place to prevent future attacks should be a priority.

Source:
IDF to secure Judea and Samaria with border system overrun on October 7, by Batya Jerenberg/World Israel News, December 16, 2024

The Israeli government and the country’s Supreme Court may be on a collision course that could result in another attempt to reform the judiciary and restore the balance of power among the three branches of government, Justice Minister Yariv Levin said Saturday night.

More than a year after the war in Gaza forced the government’s judicial reform plan off the agenda, and a year and a half since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu froze efforts to move forward with the reform in the face of large-scale protests, Levin suggested over the weekend that Israel’s Supreme Court may force the coalition to revive his shelved reform plan.

On Saturday night, Levin published a lengthy Facebook post accusing the Supreme Court of running roughshod over the rights of the country’s legislative and executive branches. Based on this he says it now compels the Israeli government to start the judicial reform process. We pray that this time the process proceeds full throttle to prevent further outrageous judicial overreach.

Source:
Supreme Court forcing return of judicial reform, says justice minister, by David Rosenberg/World Israel News, December 15, 2024

Following a security situational assessment, Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the IDF to increase preparations to protect communities and traffic routes in Judea and Samaria. The new security concern is the danger from surprise attacks on communities and attacks by extremist Islamic terrorist elements inspired by the rebels’ recent successes in overthrowing the Assad regime in Syria.

Last night (Wednesday), a 10-year-old boy was murdered when a terrorist opened fire on an Israeli bus on its way from Beitar Illit to Jerusalem. Four other people were wounded in the attack. Israel is correct to fear attacks of this nature and take steps to prevent them.

AFSI was pleased to host a discussion with Avi Abelow of Pulse of Israel last night and he spoke at length on the aftermath of October 7 and how Israel needs to move forward in the face of continued terror activity to destroy The Jewish Nation State. “The left’s dangerous plans ignore a critical truth about the Middle East: things change rapidly, and no peace agreement can be relied upon. Only the strong survive in this neighborhood.” Avi reaffirmed what we’ve been hearing from other sources: as the Middle East landscape continues to change rapidly and old regimes are coming down, Israel has reason to be hopeful. All of the current challenges present a unique opportunity for Israel to implement strategic actions and act decisively to secure its future.

Sources:
IDF increases efforts to prevent terror attacks in Judea and Samaria after Assad’s fall, by Israel National News, December 12, 2024

A proactive Israel must seize the day, by Avi Abelow/Israel National News, December 12, 2024

In a significant policy shift, the Israeli government has approved a proposal by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to establish an inter-ministerial team under the Ministry for Diaspora Affairs and the Struggle Against Antisemitism to oversee the registration of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) focused primarily on providing social welfare assistance to Palestinian Authority residents.

The new regulations outline specific criteria for registering organizations and approving their employees’ work visas. Among the considerations is the organization’s stance on Israel, particularly regarding its involvement in activities such as calls to boycott the State of Israel or efforts to delegitimize the country’s existence.

The move is expected to have far-reaching implications for both Israeli-Palestinian Authority relations and the operations of international NGOs. Organizations that align with the new criteria will be able to continue their work, while those considered problematic under Israel’s new framework may face more stringent restrictions. It’s certainly time for this type of action!

Source:
Israeli Government Approves Plan to Oversee Foreign NGOs Aiding Palestinians, by Hana Levi Julian/Jewish Press, December 9, 2024

The number of new illegal Palestinian Arab building starts in Judea and Samaria is down sharply this year, according to a new report released by Regavim, which follows a period of increased enforcement efforts against unauthorized construction.

The study found that there was a significant decrease in the number of new illegal structures completed in 2024, with a monthly average of 260 buildings completed during the last survey period — down from 608 new completed buildings per month in 2023 and 547 in 2022, marking a drastic reduction compared to the previous five years.

“This is a refreshing shift in the battle for land,” said Regavim director Meir Deutsch. “While the State of Palestine is being established de facto through construction and infrastructure, the Israeli government is finally responding to voter mandates by addressing these developments. We hope to see this trend continue and even intensify.”

Israel also began razing Palestinian buildings built illegally inside a nature reserve on Thursday. Nearby residents hailed the move as “historic” saying the illegal Palestinian construction has been unchecked in the Judean Desert Nature Reserve in the Gush Etzion region.

“For years, the reserve has been systematically destroyed by illegal construction. This construction harms nature and creates a stranglehold around nearby Jewish communities,” Yaron Rosenthal, head of the Gush Etzion Regional Council, told The Press Service of Israel. “Today, for the first time since the Oslo Accords, we are witnessing the enforcement of law in this regard. This is a crucial step towards restoring the desert and preserving the Judean Desert—a Jewish desert.”

Sources:
Illegal Arab construction in Judea, Samaria plummets amid stricter enforcement, World Israel News Staff, December 12, 2024

Israel Cracks Down on Illegal Palestinian Construction in Nature Reserve, by Svetlana Listratov/TPS, December 12, 2024

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz visited Mount Bental in the Golan Heights Sunday morning. It is an observation point facing the Syrian border.

Netanyahu referred to Assad’s downfall as “a historic day in the history of the Middle East. The collapse of the Assad regime, the tyrannical rule in Damascus, offers great opportunity but also is fraught with significant dangers. This collapse is the direct result of our forceful action against Hezbollah and Iran, Assad’s main supporters. It set off a chain reaction of all those who want to free themselves from this tyranny and its oppression.”

He added: “But it also means that we have to take action against possible threats. One of them is the collapse of the Separation of Forces Agreement from 1974 between Israel and Syria. This agreement held for 50 years. Last night, it collapsed. The Syrian army abandoned its positions. We gave the Israeli army the order to take over these positions to ensure that no hostile force embeds itself right next to the border of Israel. This is a temporary defensive position until a suitable arrangement is found.”

With that said, Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered the Israel Defense Forces to create a secure area free of “heavy strategic weapons and terror infrastructure” beyond the buffer zone with Syria, the Defense Ministry announced Monday.

Katz said he had instructed the IDF to establish full control over the demilitarized buffer zone in the Golan Heights, which was established by the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement between Damascus and Jerusalem and ended the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

We are following the situation closely. This is a time of great opportunity as the Islamic Republic in Iran has been weakened severely by the loss of its Syrian ally. However, times of chaos can be fraught with danger. We are heartened by Israel’s moves to secure adequate buffer zones to protect herself from the Sunni rebel forces.

Sources:
Netanyahu on northern border: ‘Assad’s fall opens new opportunities for entire region’, by Israel National News, December 8, 2024

Katz orders IDF to create security zone beyond border with Syria, by Akiva Van Koningsveld, Amelie Botbol/JNS, December 9, 2024