How Israel’s ‘Blue Line’ team seizes Palestinian land in the West Bank

In the Palestinian village of al-Mughayyir, Bilal Abu Alia watches his land confiscated by Israeli authorities, who have reduced his 0.4 km² to a small area including his home and a few olive trees. Land confiscation often begins with the redesignation and demarcation of land on official Israeli maps by the Civil Administration’s 'Blue Line Team,' established in 1999. Comprising surveyors, cartographers, and legal experts, the team uses modern technology to redraw boundaries, enabling the allocation of land for settlement projects that are illegal under international law. While Israel claims these revisions are technical corrections, the UN states they effectively expand the boundaries of land classified as state property.