MASKIYYOT: ADDITIONAL POST ANNAPOLIS SETTLEMENT

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 000347 SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (ADDING CAPTION) NOFORN SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE. NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/PASCUAL E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/25/2018 TAGS: KWBG PBTS PREL PHUM IS SUBJECT: MASKIYYOT: ADDITIONAL POST ANNAPOLIS SETTLEMENT ACTIVITY REF: 06 JERUSALEM 05065 JERUSALEM 00000347 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, per reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (S/NF) Summary. On February 21, PolOff traveled to the Northern Jordan Valley and confirmed six new caravans at the Nahal pre-military academy settlement of Maskiyyot. Settlers told PolOff that they had moved into the caravans one month before. The six new caravans, inhabited by settler evacuees from Gaza effectively establish a new civilian, residential area inside the military academy and expand Maskiyyot's footprint southward. Satellite and surface imagery of Maskiyyot is available at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/jerusalem. End summary. The Facts -------------- ¶2. (C) On February 20, local press reported "new families" residing at the northern Jordan Valley settlement of Maskiyyot. Maskiyyot is a Nahal Pre-Military Academy installation and was not previously a civilian settlement. PolOff traveled to Maskiyyot February 21 and saw six new caravans behind Maskiyyot's southernmost row of permanent structures. They are inside the Maskiyyot fence line, but outside the footprint of the existing structures. (Note: These caravans are not in the "separate, uncleared area" described in reftel which is 100 meters north of the existing Maskiyyot settlement. That area remains vacant. End Note) Jordan Valley Regional Council Chairman Dubi Tal (responsible for Maskiyyot and 20 other area settlements) told PolOff February 21 he did not authorize the caravans' installation. ¶3. (C) PolOff entered settler Yossi Chazut's caravan. (Note: Affixed to the caravan was the sign "This caravan provided by the One Israel Fund." Chazut said each caravan cost some 30,000 USD. According a web search, One Israel Fund is a New York based 501(c)(3) organization. End Note.) Chazut said all six families had moved in one month before and were originally evacuated from Gaza's Shirat Hayam settlement in 2005. Is it a New Settlement? No. -------------- ¶4. (C) To meet the USG definition of a new settlement requires that two of the three following criteria are met: a) is located one kilometer or more from an existing settlement; b) has independent access to a major road; and c) has different ideological affiliation than neighboring settlements. The six new caravans at Maskiyyot are within one kilometer of existing structures and do not have independent access to a major road. The settlers occupying the six new caravans have a different ideology than the 35 boys studying at the Nahal pre-military academy. Because the caravans meet only one out of three USG criteria, we do not believe it is a new settlement. If it's not a New Settlement, is it Legal Under Israeli Law? No. -------------- ¶5. (C) The GoI defines a "legal" settlement as meeting the four following criteria: a) follows a government resolution to establish a new community; b) is on state land; c) has an approved plan; and d) has clearly defined municipal and jurisdictional boundaries determined by the regional military commander. If a settlement does not meet all four criteria, it is illegal by GoI standards. (Note: The last new "legal" settlement was established in 1992. End Note.) ¶6. (C) Maskiyyot was originally established by government resolution in 1982 as a military "Nahal" training academy. The six new caravans occupied by civilian settlers at Maskiyyot are not consistent with GoI's original authorization of a military installation. Changing the use of Maskiyyot from military to civilian would require a new government resolution. The GoI has not announced any such resolution. The new caravans do not meet the first of the GoI's four criteria and are, therefore, "illegal" by GoI standards. Is it a New Outpost? Likely for Us; Unclear for Israelis -------------- ¶7. (C) The USG defines an outpost as one or more mobile homes generally near an existing settlement. Maskiyyot clearly meets this definition. In addition, the caravans JERUSALEM 00000347 002.2 OF 002 share common characteristics of other West Bank outposts, drawing water and electricity from the Nahal school, and relying on the school's security arrangements. However, the close proximity of the caravans to the existing structures does not match the traditional pattern seen with other outposts, which are generally on hilltops at some distance from the existing settlement. ¶8. (C) The GoI defines an outpost as a settler presence that was not approved by Cabinet resolution, that lacks a valid plan and is at least a few hundred meters away from an existing settlement. The caravans do not meet the last requirement and may not be considered an outpost by the GoI. Is it Settlement Expansion? Yes. -------------- ¶9. (S//NF) Based on direct observation and December 2007 satellite imagery, the six new caravans expand the footprint of Maskiyyot's existing built-up area. Placed south of the southernmost row of existing structures of the settlement, the caravans extend the settlement area some 3500 square meters. They do not "fill in" the existing built up area or increase the vertical height of existing structures. Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) By extending the settlement's footprint and changing its nature from military to civilian, the new caravans at Maskiyyot test the GoI commitments on settlement expansion undertaken in the Roadmap and made to the US at the time of Annapolis. When viewed from the "Google Earth" perspective, these caravans would appear to be a clear expansion of the existing footprint. These caravans are also likely illegal by GoI definitions. As noted in reftel, this expansion is even more troublesome because Maskiyyot is well beyond the security barrier in the Jordan Valley. WALLES