Israeli families move into new West Bank settlement near Nablus

Israeli families moved into a new settlement on Mount Ebal, above the city of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, on Thursday, according to the settler regional council for the area.

The Samaria Regional Council said families from what it called the Ebal founding group were moving equipment into caravans at the new Ebal settlement. The council used the Biblical name Samaria for the northern West Bank.

A video shared by the council showed about a dozen Israeli settlers carrying boxes and furniture into mobile homes. The area also had a newly paved road lined with Israeli flags and about 10 mobile homes.

Mount Ebal is one of the highest peaks in the West Bank. Residents of Nablus' Old City said they could see the settlement homes from the valley below.

Ghassan Daghlas, the governor of the Nablus region, said Palestinians had previously gone to Mount Ebal to walk and get fresh air, but now felt Nablus was being surrounded by settlements and attacks. He said a military camp and parts of a settlement on nearby Mount Gerizim had already contributed to that feeling of encirclement.

Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, said 600 families were expected to live at the Ebal settlement in the future. He said the council was establishing a settlement there as part of expanding its presence in northern Samaria.

Excluding east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements among about three million Palestinians. Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law.

According to Israeli anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has approved the establishment of 102 settlements in the West Bank since taking office.