Overview
- The cabinet on Feb. 15 approved renewing formal land registration in the occupied West Bank for the first time since 1967, enabling officials to record extensive areas as state property.
- Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Justice Minister Yariv Levin and Defense Minister Israel Katz championed the decision, describing it as a security and governance measure to entrench Israeli control.
- The process will focus on Area C and require landholders to prove ownership under strict rules, which rights groups warn most Palestinians cannot meet, potentially shifting large tracts into state hands.
- The Palestinian Authority called the step a grave escalation, while the EU, Germany, the UN and several regional states said it violates international law, citing the ICJ’s 2024 advisory opinion on the occupation and settlements.
- Implementation plans include a NIS 244 million budget through 2030 and 35 new posts, with mechanisms expected to take about 18 months to set up and an initial goal of registering 15% of unregistered land within five years.