When science almost met politics
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In 2019, then United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that Israeli settlements do not violate international law, a departure from a 1978 memo that recognized Israel as an occupying power.
This shift in American policy merely echoed its unconditional support for the Israeli state, which overtly states that the West Bank, which Israel refers to as Judea and Samaria, belongs to Israel entirely.
Under the Biden administration, the American position was reversed again, recognizing the illegal nature of West Bank settlements. Yet financial support from the United States to Israel has never been higher, as settlement activity expands at historical rates.
The West Bank, a territory consisting of 5,655 sq km (2,183 sq mi), roughly the size of the state of Delaware, is located just west of the Jordan River.
Approximately 3.3 million Palestinians live in the West Bank along 11 governorates, the largest being the city of Hebron, located in the southern portion of the territory.
Since 1967, the Israeli state has held the West Bank under military occupation. This means that the entire area is under military rule and de facto administration by the Israeli Defense Forces.
The 1993 Oslo Accords were an agreement signed by the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Israel following years of negotiations, which divided the occupied territories into three key areas: Area A, Area B, and Area C.
The agreement stated that the Palestinian Authority, a newly-formed administrative entity that would govern Palestinian civilian affairs, would rule over Area A, which comprises just under 20% of the territory. Pictured is the West Bank city of Nablus.
Area B, which represents 22% of the West Bank, would be under joint control of Israel and the Palestinian Authority. In this division, the Palestinian Authority is in charge of civilian affairs, while Israel holds control of security. Pictured is the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan.
The remaining territory, Area C, which comprises 60% of all West Bank land, is under complete control of Israeli authorities. According to the Oslo Accords, Area C was supposed to be transferred to the control of the Palestinian Authority eventually, but this never happened. Pictured is the Ma'ale Adumim settlement in the West Bank, located close to Jerusalem.
As of 2024, there are at least 250 Israeli settlements and outposts in the West Bank. Approximately 700,000 Israeli settlers live throughout the territory.
Settlements are official communities inhabited exclusively by Jewish-Israeli citizens, and are considered an extension of the Israeli state. Larger settlements host tens of thousands of people, forming small cities, including workplaces, schools, shopping centers, supermarkets, etc.
Building permits and investments from the Israeli state are easily provided to West Bank settlements. The Israeli government provides a great deal of incentives for people to move there, too, as they are viewed as “national priority areas.”
Affordable mortgages, tax exemptions, quality facilities, and lower tuition fees for universities in the area are just some of the examples of measures that the Israeli state facilitates to ensure that settlements are attractive to its citizens.
Although many West Bank settlers are portrayed as highly religious, for many Israelis living in the West Bank, settlements simply offer a higher quality of life than in Israel proper, where the cost of living is high.
For the Israeli state, the investment, expansion, and reproduction of settlements contributes toward a critical governmental strategy that minimizes the possibility for a viable Palestinian state to be formed in the area.
Outposts, on the other hand, are Israeli communities formed without previous authorization from the Israeli government. They are usually formed on Palestinian land, intended to displace existing communities through intimidation and constant presence.
Usually, outposts are comprised of caravans or prefabricated homes, with a few hundred settlers living there. They can sometimes be dismantled by the military, as they are illegal under Israeli law. But often they are usually a seed that leads to the establishment of a recognized settlement.
From their formation, these communities are provided with military protection and access to public utilities and services, among other measures that allow the community to comfortably settle and expand.
In terms of population, the settler community is the fastest growing portion of Israeli society. As of 2024, 10% of all Jewish-Israeli citizens live in West Bank settlements or outposts.
Israel has been constructing a separation wall since 2002. Under the pretense of providing greater security for the Israeli state, according to Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, the wall has largely been used as a tool to annex more land, cutting through Palestinian territory.
While the infrastructural components of Israeli settlements are extensive and involve several strategies to acquire as much land as possible, there has been extensive debate on their legality.
The July 2024 ruling from the ICJ concluded that Israel is responsible for the crime of apartheid, among other violations to international law. Its ruling considers all settlement activity in the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem to be unlawful.
The ruling also noted that the annexation of land and resources, as well as Israel’s settlement project, were also illegal and should be immediately dismantled. The Court's statement included measures for reparations and the safe return of the displaced. Pictured are the Palestinian representatives at the ICJ to hear the ruling.
The ICJ ruling reflects the beliefs held by most of the world’s nations, regional bodies, and international organizations, largely based on Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which notes that an occupying power cannot place its civilians into the places it occupies.
Since the 1980s, the United Nations has consistently called on Israel to stop its establishment and expansion of settlements, and to dismantle existing entities. This position has been reinforced several times by Security Council Resolutions.
Israel rejected the ICJ ruling, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu considering its conclusions as “absurd” and “illegitimate.” Israel’s ideology is based on the fundamental belief that all of Palestinian territories are part of the historical homeland of the Jewish people.
According to Netanyahu, on that basis, no settlement can be considered occupation, as all the land belongs to Israelis. The historical mapping that Netanyahu refers to also includes parts of Lebanon and Syria, some of which is also under Israeli occupation, and parts of Jordan.
In terms of Israeli law, the state argues that as Palestinians do not and have never had legal sovereignty over their land, Israeli settlements can’t be considered an act of occupation. At most, the government has referred to Palestinian territories as “disputed.”
Israel also argues that historically, there were Jewish settlements throughout what is today known as the West Bank, centuries ago, and, therefore, settlements are actually reestablishing homes of Jewish communities.
The Israeli state argues that international law denies the historical uniqueness of the Israeli context, considering any acquisition of West Bank land to be legitimate.
As calls from the Israeli government grow to reestablish settlements in Gaza, the analysis of the legality of such activities under international law continues to be pressing.
Sources: (The Wall Street Journal) (DW) (Human Rights Watch) (Amnesty International) (ICJ) (B’Tselem) (The New York Times) (Al Jazeera) (PBS) (BBC)
Are West Bank settlements illegal under international law?
Unpacking the debate
LIFESTYLE Israeli-palestinian conflict
In July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a ruling that Israel's occupation of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem is unlawful. This landmark ruling provided a complete legal review of Israel's occupation of the West Bank. But Israel disputes its findings, arguing that the whole of the West Bank is part of the Jewish historical homeland, and therefore cannot be considered an occupation. Several critical debates have sprung up in the lead-up to the ruling and immediately after. So, are the settlements illegal or not?
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