RAMALLAH, June 17, 2026 (WAFA) – The so-called Higher Planning Council of the Israeli army’s “Civil Administration” approved on Wednesday the construction of 576 colonial units in the West Bank and a large building in Hebron.
The Higher Planning Council (HPC), an executive arm of the “Civil Administration”, approved the construction of 456 new colonial units in the settlement of Mitzpe Yeriho near Jericho in addition to 120 others in Karnei Shomron settlement, as part of Israel’s plan to expand colonial settlement in the occupied West Bank.
The decision also includes the construction of a 1,000-square-meter building for Shavei Hebron Yeshiva near the Beit Romano settlement in Hebron.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich welcomed the decisions, saying: "we continue to bring thousands of new residents to Mitzpe Yeriho and establishing a new building for the Shavei Hebron Yeshiva” in Hebron, describing the approval of this number of units as “a national initiative that consolidates our hold on the area” and “establishes clear facts that prevent the establishment of an Arab terror state in our heartland.”
This came a day after Jewish supremacist Smotrich announced the transfer of key planning and construction powers in Hebron from Palestinian municipal authorities to Israeli control, a move that could significantly alter administrative arrangements established under the 1997 Hebron Agreement.
Speaking during the inauguration of the Doron settlement in the Hebron hills, Smotrich described the move as a “historic correction” and part of efforts to deepen what he called Israeli sovereignty in the occupied West Bank.
The move would affect planning authority in areas that include key sites in Hebron, among them the Ibrahimi Mosque.
The latest move comes amid a series of Israeli measures aimed at reshaping the legal and administrative landscape of the occupied West Bank.
Palestinian officials and rights advocates argue that such steps advance de facto annexation by steadily transferring powers from Palestinian institutions to Israeli authorities.
The issue has drawn renewed attention to Hebron’s unique status under the Oslo framework, which divided the city between Palestinian-administered and Israeli-controlled sectors while preserving certain municipal powers across both areas.
K.F.
