20250524 - PDF - Palestinians see plan to push them from land as Israel builds national park (with legal comment)

COMMENT

International law prohibits an occupying power from confiscating land based solely on historical claims, as this is not a legitimate military necessity. The laws of occupation, such as the Geneva Conventions, require the occupier to respect the existing laws in the territory unless it's absolutely necessary for security or to apply the convention, and prohibit arbitrary confiscation and forced displacement. Any land appropriation must be for legitimate military necessity, and large-scale appropriation for settlement purposes is generally prohibited. 

International law is complex on this topic, but generally prohibits seizing land in occupied territories for purposes like creating a national park. The Fourth Geneva Convention and the Hague Regulations govern occupied territories and prohibit the confiscation of private property for the occupier's use. This means that seizure for "public benefit" within an occupied territory is typically considered illegal, as it benefits the occupying power rather than the local population, which violates the principle of non-annexation and the prohibition on altering the status quo of the territory.