Israeli approval of new West Bank settlements has alarmed Palestinians after reports said authorities cleared 34 new settlements in the occupied territory, raising fears of further land seizures and a deeper expansion of settler presence.
The anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now and Israeli media reported the decision, but no government body officially published it. When asked about the reported move, the defence ministry declined to comment.
Peace Now said Israel’s security cabinet secretly decided on April 1 to establish 34 new settlements. The report said those 34 are in addition to 68 others approved since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s current government took office in 2022.
According to i24News, 10 of the 34 are existing outposts that were previously illegal under Israeli law but would now gain retroactive legal status. Authorities have not yet built the remaining 24.
In the Palestinian village of Deir Ammar, residents said they believe a nearby settler outpost may be among those set for legalisation. The listed location of the future settlement of Ramatim Tzofim matches the site of an outpost established near the village about a year ago.
Residents said settlers from that outpost have already attacked the area at least three times. Farmers also reported blocked access roads and damage to olive trees, deepening fears that the legal change could lead to more land grabs.
Local farmer Nael Mussa said Deir Ammar could lose all its land if authorities recognise the outpost as a settlement. Another farmer, Ismail Awdeh, warned that expansion would affect every resident because the surrounding area serves as the village’s food basket.
Their comments reflect a broader Palestinian concern that settlement growth does not stop at one hilltop or one outpost, but often spreads into surrounding farmland and daily life.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967. Excluding East Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis now live there in settlements alongside about three million Palestinians. International law considers all settlements illegal.
It also says settlement growth has accelerated under Netanyahu’s current coalition, while rights groups report that new approvals, land seizures and settler violence have increased further since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Ynet as reporting that military chief Eyal Zamir warned during the April 1 cabinet meeting that the army could “collapse” under rising manpower demands. That pressure includes the need to protect newly legalised outposts once they gain official settlement status.
That means the issue reaches beyond politics and law. It also affects security, military resources and the broader future of the occupied West Bank.
