WITH all the brouhaha about the Trump-Putin bonhomie, there’s another individual who has since cherished Trump taking over the reins of the Oval Office. He’s the guy who’s just become the fourth world leader to have met President Trump at the White House. Benjamin Netanyahu is in the United States, but there’s something boisterous being concocted back in Israel.

On Feb 6, Israel’s parliament passed the rather impetuous ‘regularisation law’ that will deprive the Palestinians of their private properties in the West Bank. The law will have retrospective effect and will incorporate all of the illegal outposts that were built by Israel — most notably the Amona outpost in Ramallah. The construction of these posts has been state-sponsored.

The latest report by an Israeli daily confirms that the government provided funds to the tune of $1 million to the settlement group. The organisation was required to build illegal outposts on the land that has historically been privately owned by the Palestinians.

So, annexation goes on. This time it’s rather unique. The same old script, but engineered by a different entity. Previously, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) used to call the shots on settlement issues, but this time around, Knesset seems to have taken the lead from the military playbook.

Annexation by Israel goes on. This time it’s rather unique.

The annexation was initially masterminded under the Allon Plan, also known as the de facto settlement policy espoused, envisioned and worked upon by the Israeli government since 1968. At the time Israel occupied the West Bank, private land deeds amounted to mere 37.5pc of the total land registration. Then came the authorised takeover in 2011 — under the garb of an articulate term: ‘undefined ownership.’

Well, perhaps the far right in Israel must be reminded that they can’t have their cake and eat it too. Sensing the same, Israel’s attorney general remarked that the illegality of the law is such that it would be arduous enough to defend it in court. The bill didn’t go down well with the Israeli president, either. Reuven Rivlin said that the declaration would “cause Israel to be seen as an apartheid state, which it is not”.

Israeli Parliament’s recent declaration has brought to the fore the Knesset’s unwillingness to conform to the Hague Regulations and the Geneva Conventions. If it’s in their favor then yes, they’ll abide by the international conventional — if not, what’s with the rulings, anyway.

Intriguing enough to note that Israel’s supreme court has many a times ruled as per the same Hague Conventions that have flagrantly been violated in the passing of the resettlement law.

As per the Geneva Conventions and the international law of occupation, the occupying power has a right to privately owned property only if there’s a military need. It’d be interesting to see whether and how the Israeli parliament is going to furbish this up in front of the international community. Or will Bibi and his comrades ever feel the need to do so, anyway?

Judges in Israel might be experiencing some sleepless nights of late. On the face of it, the Israeli supreme court is tipped to rule against the recently passed law, but here’s the catch: the judges may have to choose between the devil and the deep sea.

Rule against the move, and the right-wingers will be at their throats right away. If the decision is upheld, then judges’ own credentials might come under fire. Takeaway: don’t be surprised if the supreme court decides to acquiesce in the decision — many judges are barely hanging on to their jobs, and the majority of the members of the Israeli parliament have already vowed to ‘clip the wings’ of the highest judicial body in the country.

The international condemnation for the resettlement law has been damning for Israel.

Britain has condemned the law. France has termed it as “new attack on the two-state solution”, and Germany has just called off a joint summit scheduled for Jerusalem in May.

Let’s see what Trump and Netanyahu come up with in the Oval Office.

If the International Criminal Court does end up investigating the matter in its entirety, then it would no longer be about the West Bank settlements anymore. Massive instances of land grab have been reported in the past, and an inquiry into these can further worsen Israel’s international recognition.

The United Nations Security Council banned the settlement plan in the 1980s. General Assembly called for sanctions against Israel. António Guterres has vowed for a two-state solution, but how will the former prime minister of Portugal go about it remains to be seen.

Palestinians are now looking to the international community. They, however, may have become accustomed to doing so for far too long.

The writer is a Middle East politics and security analyst.

Published in Dawn February 19th, 2017