Ask anyone what’s going on with Israel at the moment and they’re likely to talk about its war with Iran – understandable given the risk it presents to stability across the Middle East, and therefore to the world. But on the same day that Israel struck the Gulf state, something else happened which could have catastrophic consequences. Israeli troops surrounded cities in the West Bank, cutting off transport links. Residents have expressed their fear that it plans to do to Palestinians there what it has done in Gaza.
The siege follows a speech by Israeli Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu in the western Negev city of Sderot on 12 June, in which he called on young supporters to back the imposition of full Israeli sovereignty and control over ‘Judea and Samaria’ (the Israeli name for the West Bank), and also suggested that it had a right to treat Syria and Lebanon in the same way. At the same event, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi argued that the West Bank “is our land by right and not by kindness”.
Three days earlier, the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Norway moved to sanction two other Israeli ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, arguing that they had encouraged violence against Palestinian civilians in both Gaza and the West Bank. “Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich have incited extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights. These actions are not acceptable,” said the foreign ministers of the five nations in a joint statement.
Gaza loses internet access
At the same time as these sanctions came into force, the destruction of a major internet cable cut off access to communications for hundreds of thousands of people across Gaza. Though it is not known whether this was a deliberate act or an inadvertent consequence of wider destruction, its consequences have been devastating. Families separated by the chaos of war have been unable to communicate. Support networks used to help people find vital resources like food and firewood have collapsed. And it has become very difficult for Gazans to contact the outside world, to make their voices heard.
“We are in grave danger now, not because we go to American [food] aid, which is shooting at us (sic), but because we go to border and high areas to get some internet, and most of the time we fail”, said Majd, a father who relies on donations from abroad to help him feed his family. “The pain, hunger, and oppression continue to intensify day after day. We hope they do not forget us.”
Other Gazans reported having to walk for miles in order to find places where they could get satellite signals, which, even then, have been unpredictable. There are rumours that people have been being ambushed when doing this, making it unsafe to visit the same spot twice. At the time of writing there are reports that some communications access in Gaza has been restored.
On 13 June, residents of the West Bank also began reporting internet access problems. Palestinians living there have for some time been expressing concern that once the Israelis had subdued Gaza, they would come for them.
Israel tightens its grip on the West Bank
Earlier this month, the Israeli government made a decision that received little attention internationally but has a dramatic effect on how the ownership of land in the West Bank is administered. Changing rules that have been in place since 1967, it drastically weakened the legal status of Palestinian land ownership documents, calling into question the legal status of around 60% of the total land in the territory, and opening it up to being claimed by Israeli settlers.
The past week has seen a significantly elevated Israeli military presence in the region, and an escalation of violence in the raids that residents are otherwise used to, with one raid in Nablus reportedly leaving two people dead and over 30 injured. There have also been reports of increased aggression by settlers themselves. According to locals, many of these settlers were not born in Israel but are recent immigrants from the US, and have brought its gun culture with them.
Reserve troops have now been called up to strengthen the Israeli presence in the West Bank, which has been declared an emergency zone. There are reports of soldiers firing at people who approached checkpoints in the north-western towns of Salfit and Qalqilya, while bulldozers have levelled parts of Jenin refugee camp. Large numbers of residents have found themselves unemployed as they are unable to get to their workplaces in Israel, and it has become impossible for Palestinians to access al-Aqsa Mosque, an important holy site.
UK MP Zarah Sultana has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank.
Israel has stated that its actions in the West Bank are about ensuring security during its conflict with Iran, and has given no indication of when they might end.
