Israel’s security cabinet has approved a set of measures designed to expand Israeli control over the occupied West Bank, prompting sharp condemnation from Palestinian officials, regional governments, and Israeli rights groups, who describe the decision as a significant escalation in long-running efforts to reshape governance and land ownership in the territory.
The rules, approved on Sunday according to Israeli media and official statements, alter the legal and civil framework governing the West Bank and ease restrictions on land transactions and enforcement powers, extending Israeli authority into areas previously administered by the Palestinian Authority.
The decision comes amid continued Israeli military operations in both the West Bank and Gaza and days before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet United States President Donald Trump in Washington.
The newly approved measures remove barriers that had prevented private Jewish individuals from purchasing land in the West Bank and lift confidentiality restrictions on land registry records, making ownership details accessible to potential buyers.
They also expand Israeli supervision and enforcement into Areas A and B, where the Palestinian Authority has held civil and security control under existing agreements, allowing demolitions, seizures, and increased oversight tied to construction, water use, and land management.
In Hebron, planning and building authority is to be transferred from the Palestinian municipality to Israeli bodies, alongside the creation of an independent governing structure for a Jewish settlement enclave.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the government was “anchoring settlement as an inseparable part of Israel’s government policy,” while Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated, “We will continue to kill the idea of a Palestinian state.”
Palestinian officials argue the steps violate signed agreements and international law, effectively placing the entire West Bank under expanded Israeli control.
The Palestinian presidency described the move as a dangerous attempt to legalize settlement expansion and land confiscation, urging intervention by the United States and the United Nations Security Council.
Jordan’s Foreign Ministry condemned the measures as an effort to impose illegal Israeli sovereignty, while Hamas called for intensified confrontation in the West Bank.
Within Israel, the rights group Peace Now warned that the decisions amount to de facto annexation and risk international isolation and further escalation.
The measures unfold against a backdrop of intensified Israeli military activity in the West Bank since October 2023 and ongoing ceasefire violations in Gaza, reinforcing Palestinian concerns that political and territorial realities are being irrevocably altered.