Hebron-area vineyard sparks legal battle over land rights
A small vineyard near Hebron has become the focus of a larger legal battle over land rights in Judea and Samaria, as an Israeli watchdog petitioned the Supreme Court for the removal of what it calls Palestinian agricultural encroachment.The Regavim movement, an Israeli nongovernmental organization that monitors Palestinian land use and construction in Judea and Samaria, petitioned the court to order the immediate removal of an alleged agricultural encroachment spanning 0.68 acres on the outskirts of the Palestinian village of Qilqis, south of Hebron.The petition names Defense Minister Israel Katz, the police and other military and Defense Ministry officials as respondents, asking them to enforce military orders directing authorities to remove people encroaching on state-owned land, demolish illegally built infrastructure and open criminal investigations into those responsible.The IDF Civil Administration, named in Regavim’s petition, did not respond to TPS-IL’s requests for comment. The Civil Administration is responsible for coordinating civilian…
An Israeli watchdog group, Regavim, has petitioned the Supreme Court to remove what it calls Palestinian agricultural encroachment on state-owned land in Judea and Samaria. The petition focuses on a 0.68-acre vineyard near Qilqis, south of Hebron, which Regavim claims was illegally established in 2022 on rocky land in Area C. The group argues that the absence of Israeli sovereignty and a comprehensive land-registration system, coupled with the continued application of outdated Ottoman-era land laws, allows Palestinians to claim rights over unregistered land. Tamar Sikurel, spokesperson for Regavim, stated, "Legally, that means the system relies on the laws of the last sovereign power to govern the territory, and in effect, the last sovereign was the Ottoman Empire." Regavim estimates that this process has led to Palestinians gaining effective control over approximately 125,000 acres across Judea and Samaria, and seeks to change state policy and enforcement priorities.
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