RAMALLAH, April 26, 2026 (WAFA) – A new study has found that Israeli authorities are reshaping control over land in the West Bank through military seizure orders issued for security purposes.
The study, prepared by researcher Amir Dawood and published as part of the Palestinian Policy Papers series by the Institute of Palestine Studies, examines these orders as a central tool used to restructure land control.
It found that such orders, which are formally presented as temporary measures based on military necessity, have effectively become a systematic policy used to create lasting facts on the ground. Rather than being limited to immediate security needs, they are increasingly used for long-term projects, including the construction of security roads, buffer zones around settlements, and expanded control over Palestinian land.
According to the study, the number of seizure orders has risen significantly in recent years, increasing from 32 in 2023 to 35 in 2024, before jumping to 94 in 2025, indicating a growing reliance on this mechanism.
The study also documented the issuance of 173 military orders since October 7, 2023, resulting in the seizure of approximately 4,211 dunums of land for projects such as roads, buffer zones, military sites, and fencing.
It noted that this practice exceeds the limits set by international humanitarian law regarding military necessity, as the concept is being expanded to include projects that primarily serve settlement infrastructure rather than direct military operations.
The study explained that seizure orders function as a legal workaround, maintaining a temporary appearance while leading in practice to permanent changes in land use.
It identified three main patterns: the use of such orders to build roads that later serve settlements, the establishment of buffer zones that isolate and degrade Palestinian land ahead of its reclassification, and the allocation of so-called state land to support these measures as part of a broader system of territorial control.
The study concluded that the cumulative impact of these policies amounts to “functional annexation,” meaning the imposition of permanent control without formal declaration, allowing authorities to avoid legal and diplomatic consequences while altering land use, severing ties between Palestinians and their land, and reinforcing settlement expansion.
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