11/24/2024

With Trump Back, Israeli Settlers Revive Goal of Full Control of West Bank

For years, the area has shrunk as continued encroachment occurred

After a record, and some say illegal, expansion of Israeli settlement activity, some settler advocates in the occupied West Bank are looking to Donald Trump to fulfill a dream of imposing sovereignty over the area seen by Palestinians as the heart of a future state.

The West Bank has been transformed by the rapid growth of Jewish settlements since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned at the head of a far-right nationalist coalition two years ago. During that time, an explosion in settler violence that has led to U.S. sanctions.

In recent weeks, Israeli flags have sprouted on hilltops claimed by some settlers in the West Bank's Jordan Valley, adding to worries among many local Palestinians of greater control of those areas. Some settlers prayed for Trump's victory before the election.

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