Israel is annexing the occupied West Bank as we speak – making a mockery of the ‘ceasefire’

Reports are now emerging that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) has announced a comprehensive closure of the ‘Judea and Samaria Area’, which is Israel’s name for the illegally occupied West Bank. The closure is due to begin at 7pm this evening, 21 January 2025, lasting until Monday 1 February 2025. The reckless and dangerous move by Israel makes a total mockery of the fragile ceasefire in Gaza, which began on Sunday 19 January.

Israel has also launched overnight drone strikes and begun an offensive operation on Jenin, including Jenin Refugee Camp, in the north of the illegally occupied West Bank.

Occupied West Bank: ‘Iron Wall’ plan from far-right extremists

The BBC has reported that at least six Palestinians have been killed and thirty-five have been injured. The military offensive has been referred to as ‘Iron Wall’ and an Israeli military statement said that it would continue ‘as long as necessary.’ These actions cast serious doubt on Israel’s commitment to the ceasefire and demonstrates a reckless attitude towards the recently agreed-upon deal.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has claimed that ‘Iron Wall’ will be an ‘intense and prolonged operation’ and forms ‘part of the war objectives added to the Cabinet at the request of the Religious Zionism party on Friday.’

Such concessions further demonstrate that Netanyahu’s right-wing government policies are being dictated by the most extremist far-right elements of the coalition, including Smotrich’s party. Such destabilising and war-mongering behaviour pose a grave threat to the rights of Palestinians and to peace more broadly.

They must be utterly condemned by the international community and sanctions must be placed on members of the Israeli cabinet responsible.

Continuing apartheid

Under the terms of the announced closure, only humanitarian, medical and exceptional cases will be permitted, subject to approval by the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT). COGAT has long been used to arbitrarily restrict the freedom of movement of Palestinians, and it is a crucial tool of apartheid in order to ensure that Palestinians are fragmented and unable to travel freely, into, out of and within the occupied Palestinian territory.

In August 2023, the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) wrote a landmark report entitled ‘Fenced Off‘, which dealt with new COGAT Regulations designed to further curtail these freedoms.

Residents in the occupied West Bank have been advised to prepare sufficient water and food for at least two weeks to meet their needs during the closure. This further demonstrates the efforts made to police the freedom of movement of Palestinian people and further entrench apartheid measures.

What is happening now is an imposition of collective punishment over Palestinians in the illegally occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, raising concerns regarding further annexation plans and is in breach of Israel’s obligations under the fourth Geneva Convention.

The occupied West Bank under siege

To reiterate, Israel’s reckless military offensive in the occupied West Bank must be utterly condemned by the international community and sanctions must be placed on members of the Israeli cabinet responsible.

ICJP reiterates that what is happening now is the result of decades long impunity granted to Israel over the past decades and heightened over the past fifteen months. We demand third states and the international community to uphold their obligations and exert pressure on the Israeli government to ensure that what happened in Gaza is not repeated across the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory.

This article was published on behalf of the ICJP

Featured image via the Canary