Overview

• The Cabinet signed off on May 29 for 22 new settlements, marking the biggest growth in the West Bank since the 1993 Oslo Accords.
• Nine of the approved sites are entirely new communities and 12 former outposts will be retroactively legalized under Israeli law.
• Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich described the move as a fulfillment of Zionist vision and Defense Minister Israel Katz said it secures Israeli claims and counters terrorism.
• The United Kingdom, Jordanian Foreign Ministry, United Nations and Palestinian Authority condemned the plan as illegal under international law and an obstacle to a two‐state solution.
• Analysts warn the expansion will exacerbate settler‐Palestinian violence, displace Palestinians and further strain Israel’s relations with moderate Arab states and Western allies.