Land Research Center

• Violation: Beginning to place new settlement housing units.
• Location: Burin village located to the south of Nablus city.
• Date of violation: February 2025.
• Aggressor party: "Yitzhar" settlement.
• Impacted party: The people of Burin village in general and farmers in particular.

Description:

 The Israeli occupation continues expansion works of settlement activities in the " Yitzhar " settlement built on the lands of Burin village. 

It is noted that according to recent developments, settlers from the " Yitzhar " settlement have placed seven mobile housing units directly to the north of that settlement on the village lands, on an area of 12 dunams within the land plot called "Al-Mayadeen," which is classified as state land designated as grazing land according to the occupation's description. 

This new aggression apparently aims to expand the " Yitzhar " settlement established on parts of the village lands, thereby completely changing the features of that area. It should be noted here that the beginning of any new settlement activity involves paving new settlement roads or establishing new housing units in the area. It is worth mentioning that the new site is actually located within militarily closed areas adjacent to the " Yitzhar " settlement at a distance of about 100 meters to the north, where the farmers who own the lands have been deprived of entering that area to cultivate or utilize it for more than 30 years.

For his part, Ibrahim Imran, head of the Burin Village Council, told the LRC researcher the following: 

"We suffer greatly from the repeated attacks by settlers on those lands located in the Al-Mayadeen basin, which usually take place under the guard of the occupation army, making it easier for settlers to take control of those agricultural lands. Hundreds of cases of attacks against Palestinian citizens in the village have been recorded over the past years. The ' Yitzhar ' settlement has been gradually and continuously expanding toward the village, where over the past ten years, the settlement has expanded to twice its current area."

It should be noted that Burin village is considered one of the villages that has suffered for decades from occupation harassment, as most of Burin's lands are targeted, amounting to 7,000 dunams, equivalent to 75% of the agricultural lands in the village, which have become direct prey for settlers. These lands have been greatly damaged and have lost their agricultural splendor for which the village was famous over many decades. Currently, there are three large settlements on the village lands: "Yitzhar" settlement, " Har Bracha " settlement, and "Havat Ronin" settlement, which contributes to converting most of those lands into closed military zones where Palestinians are prohibited from accessing except through coordination with the occupation's liaison and coordination office at specific times of the year.

United Nations General Assembly Resolutions Regarding Settlements:

1. The United Nations General Assembly resolution dated 20/12/1972, in which Israel was demanded to cease a number of measures and practices, including (building Israeli settlements in the occupied Arab territories and transferring some civilian population from Israel to the occupied Arab territories).
2. The United Nations General Assembly solution dated 15/12/1972, in which the General Assembly requested Israel to cease annexing any part of the occupied Arab territories and establishing settlements in those territories, and transferring population to them.
3. The United Nations General Assembly resolution dated 7/12/1973, in which the General Assembly expressed deep concern over Israel's violation of the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and all measures taken by Israel to change the features or demographic composition of the occupied territories and considered them violations of international law.
4. The General Assembly resolution dated 29/11/1974 in which the General Assembly expressed grave concern about Israel's annexation of some parts of the occupied territories and the establishment of settlements and transfer of population to them
5. The United Nations General Assembly resolution dated 15/12/1975, consisting of four sections, condemned in the first section all measures practiced by Israel in the occupied territories, describing these practices as constituting serious violations of the United Nations Charter and an obstacle to establishing a lasting and just peace in the region, affirming that these measures are null and void, and have no basis in legitimacy.
6. The General Assembly resolution issued on 28/10/1977, which affirmed in its first paragraph that all measures and procedures taken by Israel in the Palestinian territories and other occupied Arab territories since 1967 are legally invalid, and constitute a serious obstacle to efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace in the Middle East. The General Assembly also deeply regrets Israel's continuation in implementing these measures, especially the establishment of settlements in the occupied Arab territories.
7. United Nations Security Council Resolution 478 dated 20/08/1980 condemning "Israel's" attempt to annex East Jerusalem and its non-compliance with Security Council Resolution 476, as well as condemning the "Jerusalem Law of 1980" which declared Jerusalem as the "complete unified" capital of "Israel," considering it a violation of international law. The resolution states that the Council will not recognize this law, and called on member states to withdraw their diplomatic missions from the holy city.

United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 dated 23/12/2016: The Security Council adopted by an overwhelming majority a resolution submitted by Senegal, Malaysia, Venezuela, and New Zealand condemning settlements and demanding their cessation in the occupied Palestinian territory. The vote was carried by 14 members of the Security Council in favor of the resolution while the United States alone abstained from voting. The resolution affirms that Israeli settlements established in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, are illegal under international law and constitute a major obstacle to achieving the two-state solution and a just, lasting, and comprehensive peace.

مشروع: حماية الحقوق البيئية الفلسطينية في مناطق "ج" SPERAC IV   - FCDO

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of Land Research Center and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the project donor; the Norwegian Refugee Council.

إخلاء المسؤولية: الآراء ووجهات النظر الواردة في هذا التقرير هي آراء ووجهات نظر مركز أبحاث الأراضي ولا تعكس بالضرورة وجهات نظر أو مواقف الجهة المانحة للمشروع؛ المجلس النرويجي. للاجئين