A look at all the changes that have been made under Trump’s administration so far.
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Jerusalem — Israel’s parliament on Monday passed a contentious law
meant to retroactively legalise thousands of West Bank settlement homes built
unlawfully on private Palestinian land, a step that is expected to trigger
international outrage and a flurry of lawsuits against the measure.
The explosive law is the latest in a series of pro-settler steps
taken by Israel’s hard-line government since the election of Donald Trump as US
president. He is seen as more sympathetic to Israel’s settlement policies than
his fiercely critical predecessor, and the Israeli government has approved
plans to build thousands of new homes on occupied
territory since Trump took office.
“We are voting tonight on our right to the land,”
Cabinet minister Ofir Akunis said during a stormy debate ahead of the vote.
“We are voting tonight on the connection between the Jewish people and its
land. This whole land is ours. All of it. ”
Critics say the legislation enshrines into law the theft of
Palestinian land, and it is expected to be challenged in Israel’s Supreme
Court. According to the law, Palestinian landowners would be compensated either
with money or alternative land, even if they did not agree to give up their
property.
The vote passed 60-52 in Israel’s 120-member Knesset following a
raucous debate in which opposition lawmakers shouted from their seats at
governing coalition lawmakers speaking in favour of the vote from the dais.
Some legislators supportive of the law took pictures of the plenum during the
vote while some spectators in visitors’ seats raised black cloth in apparent
protest.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had voiced misgivings
about the law in the lead-up to vote,
reportedly expressing concern that it could lead to international censure and saying he wanted to coordinate with the Trump
administration before moving ahead on a vote.
He told reporters on a trip to London that he had updated
Washington and was ready to move ahead with the law. He was on his way back
from the trip and was not present for the vote.
The White House’s immediate response was to refer to its statement
last week that said the construction of new settlements “may not be
helpful” in achieving an Israeli-Palestinian peace. The State Department
later that “the Trump administration will withhold comment on the
legislation until the relevant court ruling”.
‘Misguided’
David Harris, CEO of AJC, the global Jewish advocacy organization,
said: “Israel’s High Court can and should reverse this misguided
legislation. ”
“The controversial Knesset action, ahead of Prime Minister
Netanyahu’s meeting with president Trump in Washington, is misguided and likely
to prove counter-productive to Israel’s core national interests,” he said
in a statement.
Netanyahu’s attorney general has called the bill unconstitutional
and said he won’t defend it in the Supreme Court. Critics have warned it could
drag Israel into a legal battle at the International Criminal Court at The
Hague, Netherlands, which is already pursuing a preliminary examination into
settlements.
Among the law’s problematic elements is that the West Bank is not
sovereign Israeli territory and that Palestinians who live there are not
citizens and do not have the right to vote for the government that imposed the
law on them.
Palestinians condemned the law.
“This is an escalation that would only lead to more
instability and chaos. It is unacceptable. It is denounced and the
international community should act immediately,” said Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a
spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Netanyahu faced intense pressure from within his nationalist
coalition, especially from the pro-settler Jewish Home party, to press ahead
with the vote following the court-ordered evacuation last week of the illegal
Amona outpost found to have been built on private Palestinian land. Over 40
settler families were forced to leave the 20-year-old outpost, and on Monday
construction vehicles demolished and removed the trailer homes that remained
behind.
Opposition legislators said Netanyahu’s support for the law was a
high-stakes risk meant solely to curry favour with settler constituents and
their potent political lobby.
“For how many settler votes is Netanyahu willing to pass a
law that he admits will drag us to The Hague? ” Zehava Galon, leader of the dovish Meretz party, wrote on
Facebook ahead of the vote. “The prime minister declares that the
legalization bill is dangerous for Israel and instead of standing on his hind
legs to stop this shameful law, he presses ahead with it. ”
Trump’s limits
After years of condemnations from the Obama administration over
settlement construction, Israel’s government has ramped up settlement
initiatives since Trump took office, announcing plans for some 6 000 new homes
in the West Bank and east Jerusalem and promising to build a new settlement for
the Amona evacuees.
Trump has signalled a far more accepting approach to settlements,
raising hopes in Netanyahu’s government that it will be able to step up
construction. The White House said little as Netanyahu announced plans during
Trump’s first two weeks in office to build over 6
000 new settler homes. But after Netanyahu announced his plan to establish a
new settlement for the first time in two decades, Trump indicated that he, too,
might have his limits.
“While we don’t believe the existence of settlements is an
impediment to peace, the construction of new settlements or the expansion of
existing settlements beyond their current borders may not be helpful in
achieving that goal,” the White House said.
