Radical Transformation in the West Bank: Israeli Decisions End Oslo Era and Impose Institutional Annexation

Israeli steps are accelerating towards reshaping the legal and administrative reality in the occupied West Bank, through a series of decisions that go beyond mere traditional settlement expansion. These measures, approved by the ministerial committee, aim to shift the annexation process from field practices to a comprehensive institutional and legal level that strikes at the core of previously signed agreements.

Current data indicates that these decisions are the most significant since 1967, as they do not merely change the landscape, but rather reorganize property and demolition files on a wide scale. According to media sources and statements by the Settlement Council, the goal is to entrench Israeli sovereignty de facto by changing purchase and construction regulations.

Observers believe that these steps represent a transition from a direct military occupation model to a hybrid administrative model, in which Israeli civil institutions are granted broad powers. This is done without an official declaration of sovereignty, thereby solidifying the Israeli presence as the sole legal authority over the occupied Palestinian land.

Experts in Israeli affairs confirmed that Tel Aviv has moved beyond the logic of temporary occupation management and has begun to abolish the legal status of the West Bank as occupied territory under international law. The area is currently being dealt with under the name "Judea and Samaria," with its direct subjection to Israeli civil laws and regulations.

The great danger lies in ending the legal authority of the Palestinian Authority over areas classified (A) and (B), where it had administrative and security powers. The new decisions lead to the return of property and infrastructure management in these areas to direct Israeli control, which undermines the Oslo understandings.

Regarding land ownership, the transfer of "Tabu" (land registration) powers and property registration to the Israeli Civil Administration opens the door to legitimizing the seizure of Palestinian properties. These new laws allow for the transfer of land ownership to settlers even within densely populated urban areas that were considered far from targeting.

Reports indicate that the Civil Administration, overseen by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, has transformed from a limited executive body into a comprehensive sovereign authority. This body can now intervene in all aspects of Palestinian life under the pretext of environmental protection, antiquities, or security requirements.

Hebron city and Rachel's Tomb area in Bethlehem stand out as two primary hotspots of danger within this new plan, as Israel seeks to impose a municipal authority for settlers there. Field steps have included withdrawing the powers of managing the Ibrahimi Mosque from the Hebron municipality and handing them over completely to the Civil Administration of the occupation.

On the international level, former diplomats warned that these measures clearly express Israel's intention to definitively eliminate the idea of an independent Palestinian state. They considered that international silence or merely condemning statements encourages the Israeli government to proceed with liquidating what remains of the two-state solution.

The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission indicates that Israel is challenging the entire international community through these laws that legitimize settlement and abolish Palestinian institutional presence. The commission called for the necessity of an effective deterrent to stop the implementation of these decisions on the ground before it is too late.

In light of this transformation, Palestinians in major cities classified (A) are threatened with demolition and confiscation operations without any national legal authority to protect them. This development represents a complete collapse of the legal umbrella provided by international and local agreements for the Palestinian population over the past three decades.

Israeli government ministers, such as Israel Katz and Bezalel Smotrich, confirm that these decisions aim to remove what they describe as "discriminatory legal obstacles." This discourse reflects a desire to equate settlers with citizens inside Israel in terms of property and administrative rights in the West Bank.

For its part, Palestinian academic and diplomatic circles called for the necessity of moving from political statements to practical measures to confront annexation. This includes demanding that international parties impose tangible sanctions and ban dealings with Israeli institutions that manage the occupied territories.

The scene in the West Bank remains open to escalation possibilities, with Israel continuing to impose legal realities that will be difficult to reverse in the future. This stage is considered the most critical in the history of the conflict, where the language of negotiation is being replaced by the language of unilateral laws and absolute institutional control.

The decisions represent a clear transition from policies of imposing a fait accompli to actual, institutional, and comprehensive legal annexation of the West Bank.