DayofPal— Israeli settlements watchdog, Peace Now, said a new Israeli bill aims to expand control over West Bank’s archeological sites “constitutes an annexationist measure in every respect” and would lead to broad-scale confiscation of Palestinian land.
The bill would bring management of Roman, Byzantine and Crusader-era sites under Israeli Ministry of Heritage management and allow related “expropriation and purchase of real estate” in the West Bank, which Israel calls by its Hebrew biblical name.
The “Heritage Authority in Judea and Samaria” bill passed one of three votes by Israel’s parliament in May, but it is unclear whether the final vote will be held before parliament disperses ahead of an election expected by October 27.
That in effect would strip away oversight of some ancient sites from the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, which under the 1990s Oslo peace accords has exercised limited self-rule in parts of the West Bank, territory Israel captured in a 1967 war.
The bill has drawn criticism from Palestinians and Israeli rights groups who say it is tantamount to annexation of occupied land and would expand Jewish settlements.
The PA’s tourism minister, Hani Al-Hayek, said “control over these antiquities is intended to expand control and expand settlements in these areas, deep inside Palestinian territories.”
Using archaeology to expand settlements is not a new practice, but the scope of the Israeli government’s measures has been unprecedented, Peace Now said.
One example is the Palestinian village of Sebastia in the northern West Bank where residents, many of whom trace their roots to the land back centuries, rely heavily on tourism to a nearby archaeological site.
The ancient site in Sebastia has ruins from the 9th-century B.C. Israelite kingdom as well as Roman, Byzantine, Crusader and Ottoman remnants, archaeologists say. It is on a tentative list for inclusion as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In late 2025, Israel announced a plan to seize about 1,800 dunams (445 acres) at the site, which it said was meant to develop the area, affecting around 5,000 olive trees growing in the village groves, village officials said.
“They are incorporating areas containing water resources, roads and antiquities, leaving us as residents without any resources. It is part of settlement expansion,” said Sebastia Deputy Mayor Nizar Kayed.
Business had already been suffering since late 2023 with tourism dropping because of war in the region, said Nahed Sakha, whose Sebastia restaurant is on land slated for confiscation.
“It seems that the Israeli plan (is) to isolate the archaeological site from the people,” Sakha said.
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