On Thursday, The Guardian newspaper reported that the Israeli army transferred significant legal powers in the occupied West Bank to pro-settler civil servants working for the far-right minister, Bezalel Smotrich.
The newspaper said that Smotrich and his allies have long maintained that controlling the Civil Administration or large parts of it constitutes a means to expand Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank, and “their ultimate goal is direct control by the central government and its ministries.”
The newspaper added, in a report on the subject, that this development “reduces the possibility of imposing legal controls on the expansion and development of settlements.”
The report stated that Israeli politicians have long sought to find ways to permanently seize or annex the West Bank, since its occupation in 1967.
Israeli lawyer Michael Sfard said, “The bottom line is that for anyone who thinks the annexation issue is ambiguous, this order should remove any doubts. What this order does is transfer broad administrative powers from the military commander to Israeli civilians working in the government.”
The last coup
The newspaper considered this to be the latest coup for Smotrich, who holds the position of Finance Minister, and also became a Minister in the Ministry of Defense after a coalition agreement between his far-right political party and the Likud Party led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
It is noteworthy that the Civil Administration is primarily responsible for planning and construction in Area C of the West Bank, i.e. 60% of the occupied Palestinian territories under full Israeli administrative and security control.
Reports in Israeli media say that US officials privately discussed the possibility of imposing sanctions on Smotrich, due to his destabilizing influence in the West Bank.
It is noteworthy that Smotrich himself lives in an illegal settlement under international law.