Oranit

Oranit (Hebrew: אֳרָנִית) is an Israeli settlement and local council located in the Seam Zone, straddling the Green Line. It is surrounded by Horshim forest to the west, Rosh HaAyin and Kfar Qasim to the southwest, Sha'arei Tikva to the east, and Khirbet Abu Salman to the northeast. In 2015, the population was 9,073. The international community considers Israeli settlements illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.

History

In April 1983, the Israeli government approved the establishment of Oranit, one of three settlements planned for "western Samaria".

According to Amnesty International the majority of the land of the neighboring Palestinian village of 'Izbat Salman was lost when Oranit was established, with most of the remainder being effectively lost when the West Bank barrier was built to encompass Oranit and enough surrounding land for future expansion of the settlement. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East has estimated that three Palestinian villages in the vicinity lost 3,000 dunams of land with the creation of Oranit settlement. Thirty Palestinian farmers were initially given access to their farmland through the gates of the settlement. This right was soon withdrawn for security reasons and the settlement has since expanded onto this Palestinian farmland.