BETHLEHEM, November 13, 2025 (WAFA) – The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ) revealed today that Israeli occupation authorities have advanced plans for the construction of more than 26,000 new settlement units in the illegal Israeli colonies in the occupied West Bank since the start of this year. These plans extend over more than 30,000 dunums of Palestinian land.
In a report released on Thursday, ARIJ noted that from the beginning of 2025 up until the end of October, a total of 194 settlement plans had been proposed. The majority of these plans are concentrated in the occupied Jerusalem governorate, marking one of the most significant expansion efforts in recent years.
According to ARIJ’s analysis, the new settlement plans primarily target areas surrounding occupied East Jerusalem. The report highlights the settlements of Ma’ale Adumim—east of the city—and Giv’at Ze’ev—to the northwest—as major focal points of expansion. The institute said these plans reflect a clear attempt by Israeli authorities to impose a new demographic reality by expanding construction and seizing vast areas of Palestinian land.
The report noted that 22 construction plans were issued for Giv’at Ze’ev settlement and 16 for Ma’ale Adumim, including two specifically for the highly contested “E1” area.
In Bethlehem governorate, the most targeted settlements were Beitar Illit with 17 plans, Efrat with 14, and Ma’ale Amos with 5. In Nablus governorate, most expansion plans focused on the settlements of Eli (7 plans) and Alon Moreh (3 plans).
In Ramallah, the expansion plans covered settlements such as Modi’in Illit, Beit Aryeh-Ofarim, and Rimonim. Meanwhile, in Salfit governorate, Ariel settlement received the largest share of expansion plans, alongside Etz Efraim, Peduel, and Barkan Industrial Zone.
ARIJ emphasized that Israeli settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territories constitutes a clear violation of international law. Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 explicitly prohibits an occupying power from deporting or transferring parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.
Accordingly, the institute stressed that all forms of settlement activity—including the transfer of settlers, construction of new units, and land confiscation for expansion—represent a blatant and systematic breach of this international convention.
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