Israeli settlers attempt to seize Gaza land

Israeli settlers have reportedly crossed into the Gaza Strip in an effort to seize land within the Palestinian territory, according to The New Arab and agencies on December 11th.

Footage emerged of the Israelis breaching the border in the northern areas of Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun, where Israeli authorities have sought to establish a security buffer zone.

The settlers filmed a video in the location, where one settler said, “The entire land of Israel is ours, and after the terrible massacre we experienced, we need to understand this and internalise it and treat the enemy accordingly.”

The settler added that their group intended to “[t]ake territory, occupy and settle.”

The breach reportedly occurred within the Israeli-occupied “yellow line“, which represents the area of Gaza under Israeli military control.

It was reported that the settlers were stopped and returned to Israeli territory by the Israeli military, which warned that entering Gaza “endangers civilians and interferes with the activities of Israeli forces.”

Israeli settlers had previously established outposts in the northern Gaza region, but these settlements were dismantled as part of the 2005 settler “disengagement” plan under then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who ordered the withdrawal of over 9,000 settlers from Gaza.

Some Israelis believe in the “Greater Israel” project, where Israel would expand its territories beyond the borders established in 1967 following the Six-Day War.

Under this project, Israel would fully occupy the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, Syria’s Golan Heights and parts of Jordan.

There are an estimated 700,000 Israelis residing in  settlements throughout the West Bank and East Jerusalem, despite settlement expansion being widely recognised as illegal under international law.

A further 25,000 settlers live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which is located in southern Syria. The Syrian territory was captured by Israel in 1967 and annexed in 1981, with the US recognising Israel’s occupation as legitimate.

Although Israel officially “disengaged” from Gaza in 2005, the enclave’s population has been subject to an Israeli-imposed land, sea and air blockade since 2007.

The blockade has led to shortages of essential resources, such as food and electricity. In 2019, it was estimated that over two-thirds of households in Gaza were food insecure, with the situation further deteriorating amid Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

The New Arab and agencies, Al Jazeera and agencies, Maghrebi.org