Israel Approves 126 Illegal Settler Units in West Bank

Israeli authorities have approved plans to build 126 housing units for settlers at the Sa-Nur settlement outpost in the northern occupied West Bank, Israeli media have reported. The outpost was evacuated in 2005 under Israel’s unilateral disengagement plan.

According to Channel 7, the High Planning Council—part of Israel’s Civil Administration—has endorsed a detailed blueprint that would allow settlers to return to Sa-Nur, effectively reopening the site for settlement construction.

Sa-Nur was dismantled nearly 20 years ago during the disengagement policy introduced by then prime minister Ariel Sharon, which led to the removal of Israeli settlements and military bases from the Gaza Strip and four locations in the northern West Bank.

In March 2024, Israel’s parliament passed legislation repealing the disengagement law, known as the “Cancellation of the Disengagement Law,” clearing the legal path for settlers to re-enter areas that had previously been evacuated.

Channel 7 reported that the approved plan is expected to take effect within about two months, enabling settlers to re-establish a presence at the outpost.

The decision followed a directive issued on December 23 by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who ordered the High Planning Council to meet and review the proposal. Israel’s public broadcaster KAN quoted Smotrich as saying the move addressed what he called a “historic injustice” and advanced Zionist goals on the ground.

Palestinian officials have repeatedly called on the international community to press Israel to stop settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, which the United Nations considers illegal under international law.

They also say that since Israel launched its military offensive in Gaza on October 7, 2023, steps aimed at entrenching control over the occupied West Bank have intensified, including settlement growth, house demolitions, and forced displacement.