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Israel’s Ministry of Settlement Affairs has unveiled a new settlement expansion plan in the area surrounding the Nitzana Crossing, near the Egyptian border, according to details published on the ministry’s official website.

The initiative aims to “strengthen the Jewish presence” in the border region, which Israeli authorities frame as part of efforts to curb smuggling and enhance security. However, analysts say the plan fits into a broader policy of expanding settlement activity under security pretexts, turning sensitive border areas into de facto permanent settlement blocs.

Earlier this month, Settlement Affairs Minister Orit Strock toured the area with the head of the Ramat Negev regional council and officials from the Ministries of Settlement Affairs and Agriculture. Their discussions reportedly focused on population growth and development programs intended to reinforce Israeli presence along the border, described by officials as a response to “crime and smuggling.”

Observers argue that the move represents a continued strategy of “soft Judaisation,” using settlement growth to entrench Israeli control along its southern frontier. They warn that the plan could reshape the demographic and security landscape of the border region by establishing what officials have described as a “human wall.”

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.