Palestine weekly: Israel accelerates land grabs in Gaza, West Bank

What Happened

During the week ending 29 June, Israel accelerated land grabs in Gaza and the West Bank. In Hebron, Israeli forces began installing steel beams over the Ibrahimi Mosque's courtyard, a permanent structural alteration that the mosque director called a fundamental change; authorities also blocked the Muslim call to prayer for 1.5 weeks. In Gaza, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced that the Settlement Administration had completed plans for three settlements in the northern Strip and called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to approve them. Israeli forces expanded the 'Yellow Line' of control by pushing cement markers further west; near Beit Lahiya, a quadcopter dropped incendiary munitions on three displacement tents, and forces placed a cement block nearby, which OCHA says has accompanied nearly 200 killings since October. OCHA assesses 65% of Gaza as 'access-restricted'. In the West Bank, 465 dunums near Sinjil were declared state land to retroactively legalise the Givat Haroeh outpost; settlers built bypass roads on private land and erected fencing for a new outpost. A UN Commission of Inquiry reported that Israeli forces deliberately killed 20,179 Palestinian children between October 2023 and October 2025, establishing genocidal intent. B'Tselem reported 241 children killed in the West Bank since October 2023. On 29 June, 15-year-old Ahmad Jawad Jaber was shot dead during a raid in el-Bireh; in Gaza, an airstrike on a tent in al-Mawasi killed Diana Abu Daraz and her infant, and other children died. Settler attacks continued, including arson at Deir Dibwan, leading to rare charges against six settlers; Israeli forces demolished homes in a settler outpost. The post-ceasefire death toll in Gaza reached at least 1,045, per the Health Ministry.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The week's developments mark a transition from political rhetoric to physical entrenchment of Israeli territorial claims, effectively advancing de facto annexation in both Gaza and the West Bank. The UN commission's finding of deliberate child killings bolsters ongoing international legal proceedings and accusations of genocide. The expansion of the 'Yellow Line' and settlement infrastructure undermines ceasefire arrangements and alters the factual basis for any future two-state solution, while settler violence and state land declarations systematically fragment Palestinian territory.

Watch For

Monitor whether Netanyahu's cabinet formally approves the three Gaza settlement plans, and whether the 'Yellow Line' expansion prompts further armed responses. Watch for international reactions, including potential actions at the ICJ or ICC, and for any impact on ceasefire-hostage negotiations. Settler violence and the response of Israeli authorities to further attacks remain key indicators, as do new casualty figures from the UN and B'Tselem.