Israel’s government has announced a significant expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, approving the construction of 22 new settlements. The world is watching, irritation is growing, and condemnation by the community of nations is coming. Countries such as the United Kingdom, France, and Canada have warned their citizens that they will face sanctions if they work in Israeli settlements.
If the new settlements go forward, the landscape will be forever changed. Today it is still blanketed with more than 100 Israeli settlements, ranging from small hilltop outposts to well-planned urban communities with high-rise apartments, shopping centers and industrial parks. As the Israeli Defense Ministry announced that dozens of illegal “outposts” would be legalized retroactively, even as they built new ones.
Escalation of Settlement Activity
During this same period, settlement activity in the West Bank has escalated exponentially. This increase comes in the wake of the start of the Gaza war, which has been ongoing for 20 months. The Israeli watchdog group Peace Now decried this most recent decision. They described it as “the most sweeping move of its kind” in more than 30 years. They expressed concerns that such actions would “dramatically reshape the West Bank and entrench the occupation even further.”
Israeli officials consider this expansion a critical step to increase security. They think it good fortifies their historical narrative claims to the land. Israel Katz, a member of the Israeli government, emphasized that these developments serve to “strengthen our hold on Judea and Samaria [West Bank], anchor our historical right in the Land of Israel, and constitute a crushing response to Palestinian terrorism.” Yet, this perspective is the opposite of what Palestinians are experiencing.
Palestinian Reaction and International Law
Palestinians consider Israel’s settlements to be the biggest impediment to their aspiration of an independent state. They dream of East Jerusalem serving as the capital of that future state. The International Court of Justice has ruled these settlements illegal under international law. In response, the Israeli government has dismissed this conclusion as “blatantly one-sided” and further asserts that it is non-binding.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, called the Israeli government’s decision a “dangerous escalation.” He pointed out that these types of actions only further damage peacemaking efforts and increase current discord.
Sami Abu Zuhri, a representative of Hamas, echoed similar sentiments, asserting that the announcement of new settlements is part of what he describes as “the war led by Netanyahu against the Palestinian people.” What seems clear is that Palestinian leadership is overflowing with a sense of urgency and alarm. They are more and more anxious about what ongoing settlement expansion would mean.
Demographics and Historical Context
Today about 700,000 Israeli settlers live alongside a total of 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel occupied those territories in the war with Jordan in 1967. This prolonged conflict over land rights and sovereignty has made peace negotiations ever more complicated.
The recently approved settlements are going to be placed in the northern sections of the West Bank. Meanwhile, Israeli officials are moving full steam on their suicide-bombing response plans. They are under growing pressure from the international community, which is insisting that they do something about these widely condemned violations of international law.
