Jerusalem, Palestine – The Israeli security cabinet announced the start of land registration procedures in the West Bank for the first time since the 1967 war, a move that will facilitate land purchases by settlers. Palestinians described the move as “de facto annexation,” arguing that the decision reinforces the occupation and poses a threat to the establishment of their future state.
Israeli positions
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the establishment of a Palestinian state poses a security threat, while Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich affirmed that the government is continuing its “settlement revolution” to strengthen Israel’s control over the land. Defense Minister Israel Katz added that land registration is a necessary security measure, and the security cabinet indicated that the decision comes in response to what it described as illegal registrations being carried out by the Palestinian Authority.
Palestinian and international rejection
The Palestinian Authority condemned the decision, considering it “a de facto annexation of occupied Palestinian territory and the beginning of the implementation of plans to entrench the occupation through illegal settlement activity.” The Israeli Peace Now movement also warned that the decision could lead to Palestinians being deprived of approximately half of the West Bank.
In the same vein, the International Court of Justice, in a 2024 advisory opinion, stated that the establishment of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land is illegal and must be terminated, a position Israel continues to contest.
Israeli military control
The West Bank is witnessing ongoing tensions between Palestinians and settlers, under extensive Israeli military control and limited Palestinian self-rule. The Israeli decision comes amid internal electoral pressures on Netanyahu’s pro-settlement government.
The decision opens the door to a protracted legal and political dispute, at a time when the international community continues to call for respect for international law and the guarantee of Palestinian rights under the Oslo Accords.
