Israel Smotrich declares revolution in West Bank settlement expansion | Occupied East Jerusalem News

What Happened

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich declared a 'revolution in settlement' expansion, vowing to extend illegal outposts beyond the occupied West Bank into the Negev and Galilee. The Israeli cabinet approved 13 new settlements in the central West Bank, strategically placed along Route 60 and towards the Jordan Valley. Settlement growth has accelerated sharply: from an average of eight outposts annually between 2012 and 2022, the number rose to 32 in 2023, 62 in 2024, and a record 86 so far in 2025, backed by 75 million shekels in government funding in 2024. Approximately 500,000 settlers now live in the West Bank and 250,000 in occupied East Jerusalem. Concurrently, the United Nations reported a 130 percent surge in settler attacks on Palestinians since 2023. Recent incidents include settlers destroying electricity lines in al-Maniya, vandalizing greenhouses near Tulkarem, and seizing the Ein Rawabi spring. In May, the Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission documented 1,659 attacks by Israeli forces and settlers, with settlers responsible for 551, resulting in 7,222 trees destroyed. Israeli demolitions destroyed 155 Palestinian structures in May, 50 in Jerusalem alone. Since October 8, 2023, the combined violence has killed 1,175 Palestinians, injured 12,919, displaced 33,000, and led to 24,000 arrests.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The unprecedented settlement expansion and settler violence, accelerated under the current far-right government, threaten to foreclose a two-state solution by fragmenting Palestinian territory and isolating East Jerusalem. The strategic placement of new outposts along Route 60 and the Jordan Valley undermines the territorial contiguity of a future Palestinian state. Coupled with ongoing destruction of Palestinian livelihoods and infrastructure, the campaign risks triggering a broader escalation in the West Bank even as the war in Gaza persists.

Watch For

Monitor further outpost approvals and construction starts in 2025, especially near Route 60 and the Jordan Valley. Watch for monthly Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission reports on settler attacks and demolitions, as well as potential international responses, including UN Security Council discussions or International Criminal Court developments. Palestinian displacement and protests may intensify, and any linkage to Gaza ceasefire negotiations should be tracked.