By Alexander Cornwell
TEL AVIV, Sept 6 (Reuters) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the dismantling of unauthorized settler outposts in the West Bank, two sources familiar with the matter confirmed on Sunday, as pressure mounts from the United States to curb settler attacks on Palestinians.
The directive applies specifically to outposts established without official state authorization, according to the sources. These outposts typically consist of prefabricated caravans and house a small number of settlers. The Israeli government has periodically demolished such structures while also formally recognizing others, which allows them to access public funding.
It remains unclear when the removal operations will commence.
United Nations bodies and most governments consider all Israeli settlements illegal under international law, viewing the West Bank as occupied territory under military control. Israel, however, argues that the region is disputed rather than occupied.
U.S. URGES ISRAEL TO ACT AGAINST SETTLER VIOLENCE
Netanyahu’s decision was made in response to heightened pressure from the United States, Israel’s closest ally, the sources stated.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Saturday condemned violent settlers as terrorists, calling for them to face severe consequences following a meeting with several Palestinian Americans in a West Bank town.
Israeli media outlet Ynet earlier reported that the orders target approximately 100 outposts across the occupied territory.
The Israeli prime minister’s office and the military, which would typically be involved in clearing outposts in the West Bank, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, speaking at a conference in Jerusalem regarding the Ynet report, stated that Netanyahu had given “an instruction to evict places built in Areas A and B,” referring to parts of the West Bank where most Palestinians reside.
Under the Oslo Accords, interim peace agreements from the 1990s between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the West Bank was divided into three zones: A, B, and C.
Smotrich, a settler himself who has overseen settlement housing projects and formally recognized illegally built homes, expressed disagreement with Netanyahu’s decision but noted that the government had made significant progress in advancing settlements in Area C.
HUNDREDS OF OUTPOSTS ACROSS THE WEST BANK
According to Peace Now, an Israeli organization critical of settlement expansion and supportive of a two-state solution, there are 340 outposts in the West Bank alongside 146 settlements formally recognized by the Israeli government.
Last month, Israeli settlers besieged the homes of Palestinians in a nearby village, including one belonging to a Palestinian American, before military forces intervened. Village residents report continued harassment and intimidation from settlers.
The Israeli government has condemned settler violence, though perpetrators are rarely arrested and even less frequently prosecuted.
On Saturday, Ambassador Huckabee emphasized that it is in Israel’s best interest to take action against settlers engaged in what he described as “criminal behavior and terrorism.”
(Reporting by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Toby Chopra)