The Jewish settler population in the occupied West Bank has grown at a far higher rate than the country as a whole over the last four years, a pro-settler group said on Wednesday, a period that coincides with the Trump administration’s unprecedented support for settlement activity.
The report by West Bank Jewish Population Stats shows the settler population growing by around 13% since the start of 2017 to reach 475,481. During the same period, Israel’s population grew by around 8% to reach nearly 9.3 million, according to the government.
Jewish Settlers Assault Shepherds near Bethlehem https://t.co/xh2HKvEahx via @PalestineChron https://t.co/TQtwTyQYpo pic.twitter.com/RQOaVLTKRc
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) January 26, 2021
The group’s report, which is based on official government data, does not include annexed east Jerusalem, home to more than 200,000 settlers.
Jewish settlements are illegal under international law and widely considered to be an obstacle to creating a viable, contiguous Palestinian state.
B’Tselem’s Historic Declaration: #Israel’s Open #War on Its Own Civil Society by @RamzyBaroud #IsraeliApartheid #HumanRights https://t.co/WaNhrCyKeP via @PalestineChron pic.twitter.com/RW8YFrGcd2
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) January 27, 2021
Attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinian civilians in the West Bank have increased in recent weeks.
Former President Donald Trump’s administration abandoned decades of US policy by accepting the settlements and released a much-condemned Middle East plan in which Israel would have been able to keep all of them, including smaller settlements deep inside the occupied territory.
Last year, Mike Pompeo became the first US secretary of state to visit a settlement.
(The New Arab, PC, Social Media)
