Israel's Security Cabinet has approved 22 new settlements in the West Bank, including two that were previously demolished during the 2005 Gaza withdrawal, a key settler leader has claimed.
Israel Ganz, the leader of the settlement umbrella group the Yesha Council, said the “dramatic” decision represented an unprecedented “deepening [of] the Israeli settlement” of the territory.
"Led by Finance Minister and Minister in the Defence Ministry Bezalel Smotrich, together with Defence Minister Israel Katz – and with the support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and all government ministers – the Israeli government has decided to establish 22 new towns" he said.
According to a report by Ynet on Tuesday night, the Security Cabinet approved the move in secret around two weeks ago.
The villages span across regional councils throughout the West Bank, including Mount Hebron and the Jordan Valley.
Some of the villages listed are existing outposts that had, thus far, been illegal under Israeli law, while others will be newly constructed.
According to Israel Hayom, the government intends to use some of the new towns to bolster its presence around Route 443, which connects Jerusalem and Tel Aviv through Modi'in.
The cabinet was also reported to have green-lit the re-establishment of Homesh and Sa-Nur, communities in the northern West Bank that were forcibly evacuated and demolished during the 2005 withdrawal.
Many of these settlements have been re-established in the years since in defiance of Israeli law. More generally, a large proportion of West Bank settlements are widely considered to violate international law, including by the UK government.
"This historic decision sends a clear message," Ganz declared, adding: "We are here not only to stay, but to firmly establish the State of Israel in this area – for all its residents – and to strengthen its security."
However, the territory has been increasingly blighted by violent clashes between settlers and Palestinians.
Since the October 7, 2023 attack, Israeli forces have arrested around 6,000 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 2,350 who are allegedly affiliated with Hamas.
More than 950 West Bank Palestinians have been killed during this time, according to the Palestinian Authority health ministry.
There has also been a significant surge in violence from Israeli settlers on Palestinians over the same period.
Recent incidents have included arson attacks in Arab villages, beatings of residents and even the firebombing of a wedding hall.
And, during Jerusalem Day celebrations on Monday, nationalist protestors chanted ‘death to the Arabs’ and ‘may your villages burn’ while marching through Arab neighbourhoods in East Jerusalem.
