DayofPal—Israel has issued orders to confiscate large areas of Palestinian-owned land in the occupied West Bank to expand Route 60, a major road used by Israeli settlers.
The planned expansion of the route, which runs east of Ramallah and south of Nablus, would require the seizure of privately owned agricultural land and is expected to further divide Palestinian communities while strengthening links between Israeli settlements.
Residents of Al-Mazra’a Al-Sharqiya, east of Ramallah, said their lands are among those threatened by the project.
Palestinian landowner Taysir Salem reported that his family’s inherited land, covering around 180 dunams, and is now set to be confiscated for the road expansion.
Palestinian farmers said they discovered confiscation notices left near their lands rather than being officially delivered to them.
The orders reportedly give landowners 60 days to appeal the decision, while thousands of dunams planted with olive trees face seizure.
The expansion project has also been accompanied by intimidation from the Israeli settlers. Farmers said settlers arrived on tractors and forced them away from their lands at gunpoint.
Palestinian officials warned that the project would harm local livelihoods and accelerate settlement expansion by cutting off villages from their agricultural areas.
The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission said Israeli authorities seized more than 4,379 dunams of Palestinian land between January and June 2026 through military orders and other measures.
Rights groups have long criticized settlement infrastructure projects in the occupied West Bank, insisting that they contribute to the fragmentation of Palestinian territory and the expansion of Israeli settlements, which are considered illegal under international law by most of the international community.
Shortlink for this post: https://daysofpalestine.ps/?p=76198
