Israel Secretly Approves Record West Bank Illegal Settlement

A classified Israeli cabinet decision to approve a record number of West Bank settlements has been revealed, signifying a sharp acceleration in illegal territorial expansion, coinciding with ongoing regional conflict and rising settlement violence on the ground.

According to i24NEWS, the Israeli cabinet approved 34 new settlements in a single decision during the war on Iran, more than half the total approved in the previous record year of 2025.

The decision was initially kept classified and later disclosed after clearance by the military censor. These approvals add to 68 settlements already authorized since 2022, alongside nearly 200 unauthorized outposts established over the same period.

Some of the newly approved sites are located in areas where no settlements previously existed, including zones rarely accessed by the Israeli military.

Israeli army chief of staff Eyal Zamir attended the cabinet meeting and did not oppose the plan but raised operational concerns. Sources indicated he cited limited personnel and suggested implementing the expansion in phases.

The scale of the decision marks the largest single settlement authorization by an Israeli government, indicating a shift toward broader territorial consolidation.

The expansion coincides with rising violence in the West Bank. A United Nations report dated March 17 recorded more than 36,000 Palestinians displaced between November 2024 and October 2025.

During the same period, 1,732 incidents of settler violence were documented, representing a 25% increase year-on-year.

Recent weeks have also seen arson attacks, shootings, and vandalism targeting Palestinian communities.

An AFP tally, based on Palestinian health ministry data, recorded at least 1,050 Palestinian deaths in the West Bank since October 2023, including six fatalities since early March 2026.

The advocacy group Peace Now reported that 54 settlements were approved in 2025, surpassing the previous record of nine in 2023. Of those, 26 were previously unauthorized outposts that were retroactively legalized.

The number of unauthorized outposts rose to 86, nearly 40% higher than the prior year, with a rate of one to two new outposts established weekly.

Lior Amihai of Peace Now described the expansion as part of a broader policy direction, stating: “They’re not hiding it… this is the de facto annexation.”

He added the government’s approach reflects a wider objective to reshape territorial control and “destroy the possibilities of a Palestinian state.”

The decision’s initial secrecy, according to analysts cited in the report, may have been aimed at limiting international scrutiny during heightened tensions linked to the Iran conflict.