A new government-initiated report on West Bank outposts criticized the actions
of past administrations that led to the creation of the illegal West Bank Jewish
communities, even as it recommended transforming them where possible into new
settlements.
“We wish to stress that the picture that has been displayed
before us regarding Israeli settlement activity in Judea and Samaria does not
befit the behavior of a state that prides itself on, and is committed to, the
rule of law,” said the report, which was authored by three legal
experts.
The experts are former Supreme Court justice Edmund Levy, former
Foreign Ministry legal adviser Alan Baker and former deputy president of the Tel
Aviv District Court Tchia Shapira.
In late January, Prime Minister
Binyamin Netanyahu appointed the trio – nicknamed the “outpost committee” – to
investigate the legal status of unauthorized West Bank Jewish
building.
On Sunday, the 89-page document they penned was given to
members of the Ministerial Committee on Settlements.
The Jerusalem Post
has received a copy of that document, which provides an in-depth legal analysis
of the matter.
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