Israel Approves West Bank Land Registration Plan, Palestinians Warn of ‘De-Facto Annexation’

Israel’s cabinet has approved new measures aimed at strengthening its control over the occupied West Bank, including a landmark decision to begin formal land registration in the territory for the first time since 1967. The move is expected to make it easier for Israeli settlers to purchase land, prompting Palestinian leaders to denounce the step as a “de-facto annexation” of occupied Palestinian territory.

The West Bank remains central to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as Palestinians view it as a core part of a future independent state. While sections of the territory are administered by the Western-backed Palestinian Authority under limited self-rule, much of the land remains under Israeli military control. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces elections later this year, has repeatedly argued that the creation of a Palestinian state would pose a security risk to Israel.

Netanyahu’s coalition government includes strong pro-settlement factions that advocate for annexing the West Bank, territory Israel captured during the 1967 Middle East war and considers historically and biblically significant. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich described the cabinet’s decision as part of a broader effort to expand and solidify Israeli settlement activity. Defense Minister Israel Katz framed the land registration initiative as a necessary security measure.

According to the Israeli government, the new policy aims to improve transparency and resolve ongoing land disputes, calling it a response to what it described as unauthorized land registration efforts by the Palestinian Authority. However, the Palestinian presidency condemned the decision, warning it signals the formal start of annexation plans designed to entrench Israeli settlements.

Settlement watchdog group Peace Now cautioned that the measure could lead to the dispossession of Palestinians from significant portions of the West Bank. Although U.S. President Donald Trump has ruled out formal Israeli annexation, his administration has not taken action to curb expanding settlements. In 2024, the International Court of Justice issued a non-binding advisory opinion stating that Israel’s occupation and settlement activities violate international law, a position Israel strongly disputes.