You Shall Not Steal Arab Land!

You Shall Not Steal is one of the Ten Commandments,^[1] of the Torah (the Pentateuch), which are widely understood as moral imperatives by legal scholars, Jewish scholars, Catholic scholars, and Post-Reformation scholars.^[2]

Jewish Interpretation

Jewish law enumerates 613 Mitzvot or commandments, including prohibition of stealing and a number of other commandments related to the protection of private property and administration of justice in related cases.

467. Not to steal money stealthily (Leviticus 19:11) 468. The court must implement punitive measures against the thief (Exodus 21:37) 469. Each individual must ensure that his scales and weights are accurate (Leviticus 19:36) 470. Not to commit injustice with scales and weights (Leviticus 19:35) 471. Not to possess inaccurate scales and weights even if they are not for use (Deuteronomy 25:13) 472. Not to move a boundary marker to steal someone's property (Deuteronomy 19:14) 473. Not to kidnap (Exodus 20:13) 474. Not to rob openly (Leviticus 19:13) 474. Not to withhold wages or fail to repay a debt (Leviticus 19:13) 475. Not to covet and scheme to acquire another's possession (Exodus 20:14) 476. Not to desire another's possession (Deuteronomy 5:18) 477. Return the robbed object or its value (Leviticus 5:23) 478. Not to ignore a lost object (Deuteronomy 22:3) 479. Return the lost object (Deuteronomy 22:1) 480. The court must implement laws against the one who assaults another or damages another's property (Exodus 21:8)

— Sefer Hamitzvot by Maimonides

Maimonides (the Rambam) viewed stealing as one step in the progression from covetous desire to murder. When the person who owns a coveted item resists its unjust acquisition, the thief resorts to violence and may become guilty of murder.

Desire leads to coveting, and coveting leads to stealing. For if the owner (of the coveted object) does not wish to sell, even though he is offered a good price and is entreated to accept, the person (who covets the object) will come to steal it, as it is written (Mikha 2:2) [Micah 2:2], 'They covet fields and (then) steal them.' And if the owner approaches him with a view to reclaiming his money or preventing the theft, then he will come to murder. Go and learn from the example of Achav [Ahab] and Navot [Naboth].

— Maimonides^[17]

Maimonides’ admonition to learn from the example of Ahab and Naboth refers to the narrative in 1 Kings 21 in which King Ahab of Israel tried to convince Naboth the Jezreelite to sell him the vineyard Naboth owned adjacent to the king’s palace. Ahab wanted the land to use as a vegetable garden, but Naboth refused to sell or trade the property to Ahab saying, “The Lord forbid that I should give up to you what I have inherited from my fathers!”^[18] 

Ahab’s wife Jezebel then conspired to obtain the vineyard by writing letters in Ahab’s name to the elders and nobles in Naboth’s town instructing them to have two scoundrels bear false witness claiming that Naboth has cursed both God and the king. After Naboth was subsequently stoned to death, Ahab seized possession of Naboth’s vineyard. The text describes the Lord as very angry with Ahab, and the prophet Elijah pronounces judgment on both Ahab and Jezebel.^[19]