Illegal settlement expansion: How Israel is redrawing occupied West Bank

The Israeli information furniture has approved 19 caller colony outposts successful the occupied West Bank arsenic the right-wing authorities headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moves to forestall the enactment of a viable Palestinian state.

As Netanyahu’s authorities has made the annexation of occupied Palestinian territory a priority, the United Nations has said Israeli colony expansions successful 2025 person reached their highest level since 2017.

“These figures correspond a crisp summation compared to erstwhile years,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, noting an mean of 12,815 lodging units were added annually from 2017 to 2022.

Under the existent far-right government, the fig of colony and outposts successful the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem has risen by astir 50 percent – from 141 successful 2022 to 210 now. An outpost is built without authorities authorisation portion a colony is authorised by the Israeli government.

Nearly 10 percent of Israel’s Jewish colonisation of 7.7 cardinal radical lives successful these settlements, which are considered amerciable nether planetary law.

Here’s everything you request to cognize astir the recently approved settlements and what they mean for the aboriginal of Palestinian statehood.

(Al Jazeera)

Where are the caller settlements?

The caller settlements are dispersed crossed the West Bank – location to much than 3 cardinal Palestinians – from Jenin successful the northbound to Hebron successful the south.

Most of them are adjacent to the densely populated Palestinian villages of Duma, Jalud, Qusra and al-Lubban Asharqiya successful the Nablus governorate and Sinjil successful the Ramallah and el-Bireh governorate, according to Peace Now, an antisettlement watchdog radical based successful Israel. Other locations identified by the watchdog for the caller colony areas are successful the northwestern West Bank, successful the Salfit governorate, adjacent the Palestinian towns of Sa’ir and Beit Sahour, and different areas adjacent Bethlehem and successful the Jericho governorate.

Israel’s operation spree is entrenching the concern and squeezing Palestinians retired of their homeland. Settlements dot the West Bank and are often connected by Israeli-only highways portion Palestinians look roadblocks and information checks, making their regular commutes harrowing experiences.

Israel has besides built Separation Barrier that stretches for much than 700km (435 miles) done the West Bank restricting question of Palestinians. Israel says the partition is for information purposes.

Under a dual ineligible system, Palestinians are tried successful Israel’s subject courts portion crimes committed by settlers are referred to a civilian court.

Israel’s latest support besides includes settlements successful Ganim and Kadim, 2 of the 4 West Bank settlements eastbound of Jenin that were dismantled arsenic portion of Israel’s 2005 disengagement plan, a unilateral withdrawal ordered by then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Five of the 19 settlements already existed but had not antecedently been granted ineligible presumption nether Israeli law, according to a connection from the bureau of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.

Israel controls astir of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, territory Palestinians privation to beryllium portion of a aboriginal authorities on with Gaza. Israel captured East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip successful a 1967 war. It aboriginal annexed East Jerusalem, which Palestinians spot arsenic their aboriginal capital.

Israeli settlements and outposts are Jewish-only communities built connected Palestinian onshore and they tin scope successful size from a azygous dwelling to a postulation of high-rises. About 700,000 settlers unrecorded successful the West Bank and East Jerusalem, according to Peace Now.

The latest support comes astatine a clip erstwhile the United States has been moving with Israel and Arab allies to determination the Gaza ceasefire into a 2nd phase. After a gathering connected Friday of apical officials from the US, Egypt, Turkiye and Qatar successful the US metropolis of Miami, Florida, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accused Israel of committing repeated violations of the ceasefire that began successful October.

Israel inactive controls astir fractional of Gaza’s territory since a ceasefire was announced connected October 10 aft much than 2 years of a genocidal warfare killed much than 70,000 Palestinians.

Palestinian farmers, left, scuffle with Israeli settlers during the olive harvest successful the Palestinian colony of Silwad,near Ramallah successful the Israeli-occupied West Bank connected October 29, 2025 [AFP]

Has colony operation spiked successful caller years?

The caller settlements bring the full fig approved implicit the past 3 years to 69, according to a connection from the bureau of Smotrich, who is simply a vocal proponent of colony enlargement and a settler himself.

In May, Israel approved 22 caller settlements successful the West Bank, the biggest enlargement successful decades.

The UN main has condemned what helium described arsenic Israel’s “relentless” enlargement of settlements successful occupied Palestinian territory. It “continues to substance tensions, impede entree by Palestinians to their onshore and endanger the viability of a afloat independent, democratic, contiguous and sovereign Palestinian state”, Guterres said this month.

Palestinians person besides been facing expanding settler unit since Israel’s warfare connected Gaza began.

According to information from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), settlers person attacked Palestinians astir 3,000 times implicit the past 2 years.

Settler attacks often escalate during the olive harvest from September to November, a captious clip of twelvemonth that provides a cardinal root of income for galore Palestinian families.

Settlers are often equipped and often accompanied oregon protected by Israeli soldiers. In summation to destroying Palestinian property, they person carried retired arson attacks and killed Palestinian residents.

Every West Bank governorate has faced settler attacks implicit the past 2 years, information from OCHA shows.

(Al Jazeera)

Are the settlements ineligible nether planetary law?

No. The UN, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Committee of the Red Cross each see Israeli settlements arsenic a usurpation of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which outlaws settler activity.

In a landmark judgement successful July 2024, the ICJ, the UN’s apical court, recovered that Israel’s occupation, colony enactment and annexation measures are illegal. In its nonbinding advisory opinion, the ICJ ruled that Israel’s continued beingness successful occupied Palestinian territory is unlawful and should travel to an extremity “as rapidly arsenic possible”.

The judges pointed to a wide database of policies – including the gathering and enlargement of Israeli settlements successful the West Bank and East Jerusalem, usage of the area’s earthy resources, the annexation and imposition of imperishable power implicit lands and discriminatory policies against Palestinians – each of which it said violated planetary law.

Two months later, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding that Israel extremity its concern of Palestinian territory wrong a year.

But Israel has defied the solution by the planetary assemblage backed by its state – the United States. Washington has extended diplomatic screen to Israel against galore UN resolutions.

Palestinians harvest olives adjacent the occupied West Bank colony of Turmus Aya adjacent Ramallah connected October 19, 2025 [Hazem Bader/AFP]

Since returning to powerfulness successful January, US President Donald Trump has adopted a permissive stance towards Israeli colony activity, breaking with longstanding US policy.

In 2019, helium said Israeli settlements successful the West Bank were not inherently amerciable nether planetary law. Trump besides revoked his predecessor President Joe Biden’s sanctions connected respective settlers and groups accused of perpetrating unit against Palestinians successful the West Bank.

US sanctions connected settlers nether Biden came nether Washington’s long-held argumentation that settlements are the biggest impediments to the two-state solution to the conflict.

However, Trump and his officials person repeatedly said Israel cannot annex the West Bank. “It won’t hap due to the fact that I gave my connection to the Arab countries,” Trump told Time mag successful October. “Israel would suffer each of its enactment from the United States if that happened.”

Israelis locomotion past soldiers lasting defender during a play settlers circuit successful Hebron successful the Israeli-occupied West Bank connected December 13, 2025 [Mussa Qawasma/Reuters]

What volition the caller settlements mean for the aboriginal of a Palestinian state?

The increasing settlements – unneurotic with different projects undertaken by Netanyahu’s authorities similar the E1 colony program that volition divided the West Bank – are further squeezing Palestinians successful occupied territory.

Settlement expansions person drawn disapproval from the planetary community, including Israel’s European allies, who said the steps undermine prospects for a two-state solution.

But Netanyahu and his far-right cabinet, including Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, person doubled down connected their rhetoric against a Palestinian state.

“On the ground, we are blocking the constitution of a Palestinian panic state,” Smotrich said successful his connection connected Sunday.

In June, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway slapped sanctions connected Smotrich and Ben-Gvir for inciting violence.

Several European nations, including the UK and France, arsenic good arsenic Australia recognised Palestinian statehood successful September successful a propulsion for the two-state solution.

Israel condemned the move, and Netanyahu said helium won’t let a Palestinian state. He has antecedently boasted however helium scuttled the 1993 and 1995 Oslo bid accords by boosting colony enlargement successful occupied territory.

“It’s not going to happen. There volition beryllium nary Palestinian authorities to the westbound of the Jordan River,” Netanyahu said successful an code successful September. “For years, I person prevented the instauration of that panic authorities against tremendous pressure, some home and from abroad.”