The Israeli High Court of Justice rejected a petition submitted by Palestinians against an agreement reached between settlers residing in an illegal outpost and the Israeli authorities. Where the Israeli authorities reached a deal with the settlers last month, according to which the settlers leave the outpost, in exchange for keeping the temporary buildings they have built in their place, and the Israeli army turning the area into a temporary military base. Over the coming months, the Defense Ministry will survey the land to determine its status and see if it can be legally and officially converted into a settlement. The Palestinian petitioners asserted that the deal, in which settlers left the site until authorities could determine its status, was “flagrantly illegal.” “As the land survey continues, it is impossible to determine which areas of the land, if any, are privately owned by the Palestinians,” the judges wrote. The panel of three judges, David Mintz, Yael Fellner, and Yitzhak Amit, found the petitioners’ allegations to be “speculative”, and also wrote that there was “no basis” for the petitioners’ assertion that the result of the land survey was predetermined. For further details, click here