The Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission revealed that the occupation intends to seize 4,600 dunams of land belonging to the towns of Sebastia and Burqa in the Nablus governorate, targeting the archaeological site in the area in the occupied West Bank.

Mueyyad Shaban, the head of the Commission, said that this decision comes as part of a plan that relies on “creeping annexation through archaeology,” by using Palestinian archaeological heritage to reinforce Israeli control and turn it into a settlement and political tool.

Shaban pointed to a draft law proposed in the Knesset by right-wing members, which would expand the authority of the Israeli Antiquities Authority to include West Bank lands—effectively amounting to the annexation of these areas.

He added that the occupation claims the existence of 3,064 Jewish heritage sites across various areas of the West Bank, affirming that the current announcement comes as a continuation of military orders issued two months ago, which included 63 Palestinian archaeological sites.