Azernews.Az

Akbar Novruz

Read more

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has strongly condemned a series of policy changes approved earlier by Israel’s security cabinet, which aim to overhaul land registration and property acquisition in the occupied West Bank, moves that would significantly deepen Israeli control over the territory, including sensitive religious sites, AzerNEWS reports.

According to a report published by the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency WAFA, Abbas’s office described the decisions as “dangerous” and framed them as part of a broader campaign by the current Israeli government against the Palestinian people. The statement stressed that the measures are considered “null and void,” carry no legal legitimacy, and will have no legal consequences from the Palestinian perspective.

The PA also called on the United States and the UN Security Council to urgently intervene and halt the implementation of these decisions, warning that they risk further destabilizing the situation on the ground.

Earlier in the day, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced that the cabinet had approved steps to declassify and publicize land registries in the West Bank, which are currently restricted. The move is widely seen as facilitating land claims and property acquisitions by Israeli entities.

In addition, Israeli agencies were granted authority over maintenance and construction at several highly sensitive religious sites, including the Tomb of the Patriarchs (Ibrahimi Mosque) in Hebron and Rachel’s Tomb near Bethlehem—both long-standing flashpoints due to their religious and political significance to Muslims, Jews, and Christians.

WAFA reported that Abbas’s office warned of the serious risks of infringing on Islamic and Christian holy sites, emphasizing that any transfer of authority over the Ibrahimi Mosque is “unacceptable.” The Hebron compound is traditionally believed to be the burial place of the biblical patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as well as the matriarchs Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah.

The Israeli ministers also said the cabinet voted to overturn a Jordanian-era law—dating back to the period when Jordan controlled the West Bank between 1948 and 1967—that restricted land purchases in the territory to Muslims.

Furthermore, new decisions were announced to expand Israeli oversight over infrastructure, environmental regulation, and archaeological affairs in Areas A and B of the West Bank. Under the Oslo Accords of the 1990s, these areas fall under the civil authority of the Palestinian Authority, making the move particularly contentious.

Palestinian officials and analysts warn that the latest steps could further undermine the Oslo framework, intensify tensions in the West Bank, and complicate already stalled prospects for a negotiated settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.