Netanyahu Claims West Bank as Israeli Territory
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the construction of illegal settlements in the West Bank. The provocative move is being undertaken in preparation for a large wave of Jewish immigration, a manoeuvre that has immediately drawn sharp condemnation from neighbouring Arab states and Western partners.
The controversial pledge was delivered by Netanyahu at an event in Jerusalem on Tuesday. The event was organised by the Binyamin Regional Council, the body that administers 47 Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
“Today, many of our brothers and sisters around the world understand: this is our land and it will remain ours,” he declared, claiming the West Bank. “And when I say our land, every Jewish man and every Jewish woman, the door is open. We are waiting for you. We are preparing the door for a large-scale Aliyah,” he said.
Facts on the ground, however, paint a contrasting picture regarding the predicted wave of “large-scale Aliyah”. A report from 972 Magazine revealed that more than 150,000 Israelis have actually left the country between 2024 and 2025, following the heightened escalation caused by the deadly Hamas attack in 2023 and the war in Gaza that has drained the economy.
All settlements located beyond Israel’s 1967 borders are considered illegal under the United Nations. The International Criminal Court has also determined that Israel’s transfer of population into the territory constitutes an absolute violation of the Geneva Convention. Although most began unilaterally as outposts on Palestinian land, the Israeli government has gradually legalised them retroactively.
During his speech, Netanyahu proudly boasted that his government has established and legalised 104 settlements and 160 farms, and will continue to do more. “It is not easy, it has never been easy. The Land of Israel is acquired through suffering. Sometimes also through smiles, sometimes also through debate, but it is being acquired by us. We do not give up, we have a vision, this is our land, and it will remain ours,” he explained.
This stance aligns with Israel’s manoeuvre last week, which aggressively opened a tender for the construction of more than 1,200 homes in the E1 settlement project east of Jerusalem. The project, approved by the Israeli government last year, will ultimately encompass more than 3,400 homes. The E1 plan is particularly damaging for Palestinians because it would create a land corridor between East Jerusalem and the Ma’ale Adumim settlement, effectively severing the vital road link between the cities of Ramallah and Bethlehem.
The expansion has been categorically rejected by eight Arab and Muslim member states of the Mecca Pact, including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey, which described it as a dangerous escalation. In addition, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the European Commission and 15 other European countries also issued strong condemnations of the project on Thursday.
“The E1 settlement would undermine the prospects of a two-state solution by driving a wedge through the West Bank,” representatives of the Western nations stated. “At a time of severe instability in the West Bank with unprecedented levels of settler violence against civilians, and serious restrictions on the Palestinian economy, this decision is even more alarming,” they added.
Netanyahu’s intention to annex the entire West Bank has been signalled for years. He even described the option as remaining “on the table” when signing peace agreements with Arab states in 2020. The push for annexation has intensified after hardline Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in June explicitly urged the prime minister to apply full sovereignty over the West Bank before the general election scheduled for October.