Israel appoints settler who backs annexation to head powerful land authority

“Israel appoints settler who backs annexation to head powerful land authority Submitted by Nadav Rapaport on Tue, 05/05/2026 - 14:46 Yehuda Eliyahu, an ally of Smotrich, takes charge of key body amid concerns over West Bank settlement expansion and the impact on Palestinian citizens of Israel An Israeli settler at the Karmel outpost records activity in the Palestinian village of Um el-Kheir, south of Yatta in the occupied West Bank, 14 April 2026 (Hazem Bader/AFP) Off Israel has appointed a settler and close ally of far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich as head of the Israel Land Authority, the government body responsible for allocating and managing state land, including West Bank settlements. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the appointment of Yehuda Eliyahu on Monday. A long-time associate of Smotrich, Eliyahu previously headed the Settlement Administration within the defence ministry, where he oversaw the largest Israeli land grab in the West Bank in recent memory. His selection was approved last week by a public appointments committee, though not unanimously . The committee’s legal adviser opposed the move, arguing that Eliyahu’s decades-long personal relationship with Smotrich posed a conflict of interest. The Israel Land Authority oversees around 92 percent of state land - roughly 20 million dunams - and manages a budget worth billions of shekels. It plays a central role in land allocation for housing, infrastructure and development projects, and is also involved in administering land in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli described the appointment as “strategic”, saying it could be as significant as naming a new head of the Shin Bet, Israel’s powerful internal security agency. Chikli criticised what he described as the authority’s recent stance towards Jewish settlement in the Galilee and the Negev, expressing hope that Eliyahu would shift its direction. Bedouin families left homeless as Israel demolishes Negev village Read More » The Galilee and the Negev are home to most Palestinian citizens of Israel . The current government has pledged to increase Jewish presence in both regions, with the aim of shifting the demographic balance in favour of Jewish Israelis. Chikli has also proposed a large-scale land redistribution plan in the Negev, which a council representing Palestinian villages has described as a “violent dispossession plan”. Likud lawmaker Ariel Kallner, who heads the Knesset’s Galilee caucus, praised Eliyahu’s record in the West Bank, saying he had “led a revolution” and knew how to overcome bureaucratic obstacles. He has also been a vocal advocate for expanding Jewish settlement in northern Israel, particularly in the Galilee. Dispossession of Palestinians Eliyahu, a settler from the West Bank, co-founded the hardline group Regavim with Smotrich in the early 2000s. The organisation says it is dedicated to protecting Israel’s “national lands and resources”. Initially active in the West Bank, where it has worked to dispossess Palestinians from their land, the group has in recent years expanded its focus to the Negev and the Galilee. The Israeli NGO Kerem Navot , which monitors land policies in the West Bank, says Eliyahu lives in a settlement outpost, where the army and settlers prevent Palestinians farmers from cultivating their land. The group added that, as head of the Settlement Administration - a post he was appointed to by Smotrich - Eliyahu oversaw the “largest project of land dispossession and illegal construction since Israel’s occupation of the West Bank in 1967”. Explained: The Israeli measures imposing de facto annexation in the West Bank Read More » Kerem Navot added that Eliyahu's public service career "has been devoted to violating entire sections of Israel’s lawbook," stating that his appointment "is yet another expression of the extreme destructiveness of a corrupt, racist, and lawbreaking government". The environmental organisation Life and Environment described the appointment as “inappropriate”, warning it could deepen discrimination against Palestinian citizens in southern Israel, who “already suffer from neglect and disregard in matters of planning and development”. Eliyahu has previously backed the annexation of the occupied West Bank, saying the defence ministry was “preparing the groundwork” for the move. He has also called for the full occupation of Gaza and the rebuilding of settlements there, urging a “full-force war” against the Strip to “eliminate this evil from the world”. “Anyone who harms the people of Israel should be completely annihilated,” he said, adding that Gaza’s Palestinian population should be expelled “down to the very last one” and replaced with settlements on what he described as “our ancestral land”. According to the financial daily Calcalist , several petitions challenging his appointment are expected to be filed with the High Court in the coming days. The report said his chances of remaining in the post may be limited, citing his close ties to Smotrich and questions over his professional experience. Inside Israel Tel Aviv, Israel News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

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