Israel has approved its biggest land seizure in the occupied West Bank in more than three decades, a move criticised by activists as detrimental to hopes of a peace agreement with Palestinians.
The 12.7sq/km of land in the Jordan Valley was officially declared "state property" last month, according to an official declaration revealed by the Peace Now group.
"The size of the area designated for declaration is the largest since the (1993) Oslo Accords, and the year 2024 marks a peak in the extent of declarations of state land," Peace Now said.
The Israeli government has seized a total of 23.7sq/km in the West Bank since the start of the year, it added.
When land is declared "state property", Palestinians lose private ownership rights and are banned from using it, Peace Now said.
Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.
Since then, it has constructed dozens of settlements across the West Bank, home to more than 490,000 Israelis, which are deemed illegal under international law.
About three million Palestinians live there.
In the 1980s, Israel seized hundreds of square kilometres of land, halting seizures in 1992. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's first government resumed them in 1996.
Israel's hard-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced one seizure in March, when he attacked those "in Israel and the world who seek to undermine our right over" the West Bank.
Officials have not publicly commented on the latest seizure, which comes amid heightened tensions with the Palestinian community due to the Gaza war.
Peace Now criticised Mr Netanyahu and Mr Smotrich, accusing them of prioritising "a handful of settlers" over resolving the political conflict or ending the war.
"Today, it is clear to everyone that this conflict cannot be resolved without a political settlement that establishes a Palestinian state alongside Israel."
The newly-seized land near the Yafit settlement is designated for either a nature reserve or military purposes.
The United Nations has warned that Israel's accelerated illegal settlement construction since the Gaza war began on 7 October risks eliminating the possibility of a viable Palestinian state.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has described the expansion of settlements as "counterproductive to reaching enduring peace" with Palestinians.
Five Palestinians killed in Israeli raids in West Bank
Israeli forces have killed five Palestinians in two military operations in the West Bank, according to Palestinian and Israeli sources.
Four men died in an air strike on a refugee camp near the town of Tulkarm, which has seen a surge in violence as Israel has intensified raids.
The Palestinian Authority health ministry said the four were "killed as a result of the occupation's bombing of Nur Shams camp".
An Israeli military statement said forces "carried out a precise strike on the terrorist cell," killing four militants it identified as Muhammad Shehade, Muhammad Kanouah, Yazid Shafa and Namer Ibrahim.
The statement said the four were "attempting to plant explosive devices" targeting Israeli soldiers operating in the area.
According to the Palestinian official news agency Wafa, the dead, aged 20 to 25, were killed by a drone near the centre of the camp.
One man died in a separate Israeli operation in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, the Palestinian health ministry said.
Its statement identified the man as Nidal Ziad al-Amer.
An Israeli security official said that the 23-year-old was killed as the Israeli army tried to arrest him for militant activity.
The towns of Jenin and Tulkarm are known as bastions of Palestinian militant activity and are frequently targeted by Israeli raids.
At least 560 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers in the West Bank since the conflict in Gaza began, according to a health ministry tally.
At least 15 Israelis died in Palestinian attacks in the area over the same period, according to Israel's official figures.
