Land to be repurposed for military use in one of the biggest expulsion decisions since 1967 occupation

After a two-decade legal battle, Israel’s high court has ruled that about 1,000 Palestinians can be evicted from an area of the West Bank and the land repurposed for Israeli military use, in one of the single biggest expulsion decisions since the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories began in 1967.

About 3,000 hectares of Masafer Yatta, a rural area of the south Hebron hills under full Israeli control and home to several small Palestinian villages, was designated as a “firing zone” by the Israeli state in the 1980s. Firing zones are used for military exercises, and the presence of civilians is prohibited.

Military flight over Hebron in occupied West Bank criticised as ‘provocative show of force’

Plans to include an overflight of Hebron in the occupied West Bank in Israel’s annual independence day airshow have been met with angry responses from Palestinians and leftwing Israelis.

The Israel air force said on its website at the weekend that the controversial overflight sought by settler leaders would take place on Thursday. The decision puts an end to uncertainty over the display after an initial announcement was taken down amid criticism from Mossi Raz, a legislator in the leftwing Meretz party, which is part of the ruling coalition, who termed it “a provocative show of force and superiority”.

Killing of Israeli guard in Ariel and a Palestinian in nearby incident raise fears of escalating violence

Israeli forces on Saturday arrested the suspected killers of a Jewish settlement guard shot in a West Bank attack claimed by a Palestinian armed group that linked it to violence in Jerusalem.

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, one of the main militant groups active in the Israeli-occupied territory, claimed responsibility for the shooting which, along with the killing of a Palestinian, brought a deadly conclusion to a Friday marked by clashes at Jerusalem’s flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque compound.