Report: A New Surge in Colonial Expansion Decisions as Preparations for Knesset Elections Approach

SadaNews - The National Office for Defense of the Land and Resistance of Settlement stated that the West Bank is on the brink of an unprecedented wave of colonial activity, with the pace of approvals for construction plans and the seizure of Palestinian land accelerating, especially after the occupation authorities approved at the end of August last a construction project in (E1) east of occupied Jerusalem, which is considered the most dangerous of its kind in decades.

The office added in its weekly report, which covers the period from November 1 to November 7, 2025, that this coincides with the upcoming Israeli elections at the end of next year, or even earlier if the elections are brought forward, where government members, led by Smotrich, are racing to promote new colonial plans, exploiting his current position to intensify the colonization and plundering of land in the West Bank, which prompted the newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" to state that "Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has broken records in decisions regarding construction in colonies and in declaring lands in the West Bank as state lands," which is an accurate description of Smotrich's policy, who now controls everything related to colonial settlement activity in the West Bank.

The office continued, "Since the formation of Netanyahu's government, 25,960 dunams have been declared as state lands. To realize the gravity of this matter, in the past twenty-seven years, only 28,000 dunams were declared."

The report noted that, according to the extensive powers he enjoys, the Finance Minister and Minister of Settlement in the occupation army, Bezalel Smotrich, announced last week that approvals will be granted for the construction of approximately 1,973 colonial units in the West Bank, as part of the construction wave launched by Smotrich since taking office, with what is called "the Planning Administration in the Civil Administration" and "the Higher Planning Council in the West Bank" publishing the agenda for their upcoming meeting, where new plans are expected to be approved.

The office clarified in its report that this move is part of Smotrich's ongoing policy to strengthen and expand colonial settlements throughout the West Bank. Among the projects expected to be approved are: 133 colonial units in "Tafuh West" (south of Nablus city), 720 units in "Avnei Hefetz" (adjacent to Tulkarem city from the east), 568 units in "Einav" (in Tulkarem Governorate), about 178 units in "Ganei Modi'in" (in Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate), approximately 246 in "Rosh Tsurim" (on the land of Nahalain village in Bethlehem Governorate), and about 128 units in "Eitz Ephraim" (on the land of Mas-ha village in Salfit Governorate).

At the same time, the so-called "Higher Planning Council" approved, at the end of October last, a plan to build 1,300 new colonial units in the colonial settlement "Gush Etzion" south of Jerusalem. According to Israeli Channel 14, these units will be built in the "Russian Hill" neighborhood south of the "Alon Shvut" settlement, alongside schools, public buildings, parks, and a large commercial area expected to serve neighboring colonies, making it the largest colonial plan in the area for some time. The occupation authorities also officially green-lighted the "E1" colonial plan, which connects Jerusalem to the "Ma'ale Adumim" settlement and disrupts geographical continuity in the West Bank from north to south, in a move indicative of a strategic shift in the colonial settlement map. The plan includes constructing approximately 3,400 colonial units in an area that has seen "political promises" since the 1990s, where Ariel Sharon emphasized its importance in 1990 to create "Jewish continuity" and connect Jerusalem to "Ma'ale Adumim." In later years, both Ehud Olmert and Benjamin Netanyahu announced their intentions to settle in the area, but the plans remained on paper due to international and political pressures.

The report pointed out that since October 7, 2023, which marked a radical shift in the political and security scene, settlers have viewed the subsequent developments as a historical opportunity. The events following this date, along with the brutal war on Gaza, were used as a launchpad for attacks on Palestinian villages and towns, seizing vast areas of land under the pretext of "security" and "protection." The rate of colonization, seizures, and attacks has surged to unprecedented levels, with the war serving as an ideal justification for solidifying a new reality on the ground. The year 2024 recorded a record high in colonial plans, with 28,872 units in various planning and bidding stages, in addition to over 24,000 dunams declared as "state lands," representing half of the total land seized in this manner since the Oslo Agreement. In the current year 2025, colonization has continued its leaps, with approved plans surpassing 21,000 units within just a few months, thanks to weekly meetings of the "Higher Planning Council."

The report clarified that the situation is not limited to construction projects in the colonies; extensive land seizures from Palestinian territories accompanied this. In March 2024, Israel declared the seizure of 8,000 dunams in the Jordan Valley, followed by the seizure of 12,700 dunams in July of the same year, the largest seizure operation in 30 years. These measures, according to all estimates, aim to close vital spaces for Palestinians and prepare the land for future colonial plans. Along with this, there has also been evident complicity from the occupation government in spreading and funding what are called colonial pastoral outposts, as matching reports from Israeli, Palestinian, European, and UN organizations revealed the depth of Israeli government involvement in financing pastoral outposts and supporting violent actions by settlers in various areas of the West Bank aimed at forcibly displacing Palestinian residents. These reports, along with on-the-ground realities, indicate that with the help of the Israeli government, about 150 pastoral outposts have been established in recent years, dozens of them since October 7, 2023, through which settlers seized 786,000 dunams, equivalent to 14% of the West Bank's land.

The report noted that the land seizure from Palestinians does not occur solely through the existence of these colonial pastoral outposts, but is also followed by attacks, harassment, and repeated acts of terrorism, which are effective when observing the destroyed homes and residential centers, accompanied by the displacement of over 60 Palestinian Bedouin communities. According to a report by the Israeli organization "Yesh Din," which focused for two years on the area east of the "Alon Road" (the road extending between eastern Ramallah to the Jordan Valley), that area spanned about 100,000 dunams and had housed seven Palestinian communities with a population of around 1,000 for just over two years. Eleven colonial pastoral outposts established in the area successfully displaced these communities and forced them to leave their homes.

In this context, the newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" recently revealed that the office of the Minister of Settlement, Orit Strook from the Religious Zionism Party, is transferring 75 million shekels to fund the "security components" of settlement points, a euphemism for colonial pastoral outposts, after Finance Minister Smotrich increased the budget of the Ministry of Settlement, led by the extremist minister, from 123 million to 391 million shekels, a 320% increase. At the same time, education, social welfare, and health budgets have faced significant cuts, according to the newspaper. The Israeli Ministry of Agriculture also funds these outposts under the item "pasture grants," having transferred approximately 3 million shekels to them between 2017 and 2024, while the "Jewish National Fund" invested about 4.7 million shekels in them, funded by volunteers. This indicates that multiple entities are funding these colonial outposts, primarily aimed at displacing Palestinians from their homes. The United Nations documented the displacement of about 2,895 Palestinians since 2023 due to settler violence, including 636 Palestinians since the beginning of this year, as settler attacks surged to record levels in 2024 and 2025, with the olive picking season witnessing the widest wave of terrorism perpetrated by settlers under the protection of the occupation army and police against Palestinian farmers.

The National Office for Defense of the Land and Resistance of Settlement added that in the context of the new wave of colonization, the occupation authorities have issued two new tenders to build a colonial neighborhood in the "Adam/Givat Binyamin" settlement northeast of Jerusalem, in a frantic race to impose new demographic and geographical realities that serve the "Greater Jerusalem" project. The first tender includes the construction of 342 colonial units distributed across five complexes, while the second includes 14 separate homes designated for reservists in the occupation army as part of a broader plan to link the settlement to the colonial outpost "Givat Gaur Aryeh," which was established in February past adjacent to the town of Jaba. Last Sunday, the occupation authorities published an additional tender for planning and building a new colonial complex in the "Giv'on HaHadashah" settlement northwest of Jerusalem, enhancing the colonial cordon around the occupied capital. The occupation authorities also issued a new military order seizing Palestinian lands in the Anata area, totaling about 5,856 dunams, of which 5,254 dunams were classified as "state lands" and 602 dunams as private property belonging to Palestinian citizens from the town.

The report mentioned that 16,000 dunams of Anata town's total of 34,000 dunams are classified by the occupation state as state lands. The occupation authorities have seized approximately 6 dunams of the town's lands through a "military order" under the name of "Orders of Seizure" and "the military order" numbered T/65/25 which aims to establish a colonial road linking the "Nafi Brat" settlement to road number 437.

In the same context, the Hebron municipality revealed an old/new colonial plan that the occupation authorities are seeking to implement on the land of the central vegetable market (the old market), after what is known as "the Planning and Building Committee in the Civil Administration" declared its intention to proceed with it to establish 63 colonial units distributed over two buildings, with a height of 6 floors above ground, and two basement levels, in addition to a third building consisting of 3 floors, which will include classrooms, a library, and a synagogue, with a total area estimated at about 12,500 square meters.

The municipality said that this announcement constitutes a blatant violation of its authorities, a clear infringement on the interests of the city and its residents, and a violation of the principles of international humanitarian law that prohibits the confiscation, exploitation, or demolition of Palestinian property without justification. They will take all available legal actions to challenge the decision, safeguarding citizens' rights and protecting the public interest of the city. The head of Hebron municipality, Tayseer Abu Sneineh, currently detained in the occupation prisons, stated that "the market belongs to the Hebron municipality, which has all the required documents, and that the municipality had won lawsuits it filed against the occupation authorities regarding the market." The market was dedicated to selling vegetables before the occupation closed it to citizens following the massacre of the Ibrahimi Mosque, carried out by settler Baruch Goldstein on February 25, 1994, which resulted in the martyrdom of 29 citizens and injured at least 125.