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Israel allocates $37M to develop alleged Jewish heritage sites in occupied West Bank amid intensified settlement expansion
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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s finance minister, during an interview in Tel Aviv, Israel on, 5 December 2024 [Kobi Wolf/Bloomberg/ Getty Images]
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced Tuesday the allocation of $37 million to develop alleged Jewish heritage sites in the West Bank, amid intensified illegal settlement expansion in the occupied territory, Anadolu reports.
“For the first time in history, 113 million shekels ($37 million) will be allocated to develop more than 70 heritage sites in Judea and Samaria,” Smotrich said on the US social media company X, using Israel’s biblical term for the West Bank.
Smotrich, leader of the far-right Religious Zionism party, did not identify the targeted sites.
In May, the Knesset approved the first reading of a bill to establish the so-called “Judea and Samaria Heritage Authority,” which would place Roman, Byzantine and Crusader-era sites under the authority of Israel’s Heritage Ministry.
READ: Israeli occupiers burn 3 Palestinian vehicles, damage power grid in West Bank
The bill also allows for the confiscation and purchase of real estate related to such sites, prompting the Palestinian Authority to warn that the measure aims to expand Israeli control and deepen illegal settlement activity in occupied Palestinian territory.
According to Smotrich, 104 illegal settlements and 160 outposts have been approved in the West Bank since the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took office in late 2022.
Around 750,000 occupiers live in 156 illegal settlements and 360 settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem, according to Palestinian figures.
UN Security Council Resolution 2334, adopted in 2016, states that Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, have “no legal validity” and constitute a flagrant violation of international law.
In a landmark advisory opinion in July 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
READ: Israeli defense minister backtracks on West Bank commander’s dismissal amid army row
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel. New Labour UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham continues Labour party policy of active support and complicity in Israel’s genocide.
5 August 2026
Israeli minister calls for settlement building in Gaza, claims enclave ‘part of Israel’
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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Israeli Settlement Minister Orit Strook.[Wikipedia]
Israeli Settlement Minister Orit Strock called on Monday for rebuilding settlements in the Gaza Strip, claiming the enclave is “part of the Land of Israel.”
“Jews should live in the Gaza Strip. The demand to rebuild Jewish settlements is a correct demand,” Strock said in comments carried by Israel’s public broadcaster KAN.
“Gaza is part of Israel not only according to the Torah and Halakha, but also according to international law,” she claimed.
International law considers Gaza part of the occupied Palestinian territory and says Israeli settlements in occupied land have no legal validity and violate international law and UN resolutions.
Strock’s remarks came a day after Israeli government ministers joined thousands of occupiers in a march through a closed military zone toward the Gaza border to show support for illegal settlement building in the enclave.
READ: ‘Jewish terrorism’ in West Bank ‘threatens everyone’s security,’ Israeli commander warns
Israeli news site The Times of Israel said the march was staged to mark the 21st anniversary of Israel’s evacuation of the Gush Katif settlement bloc in the Gaza Strip.
In August 2005, Israel evacuated four illegal settlements in the northern West Bank and the Gush Katif bloc in southern Gaza as part of its unilateral disengagement plan under then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
The outlet said extremist ministers and politicians took part in the march, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party.
According to organizers from the occupier group Nachala, 28 ministers and lawmakers from the ruling coalition attended the event.
On Sunday evening, Ben-Gvir posted a video on his X account under the title “Our Gaza.”
“If they had said three years ago that we would control 70% of the Gaza Strip, no one would have believed it. That is why I say today there will be Jewish settlements across all of Gaza, and we will encourage migration,” he said.
It came amid growing calls by leaders of Israel’s far right to reestablish illegal settlements in Gaza, where Israel has killed more than 73,000 people and injured over 173,000 others in a brutal offensive since October 2023.
WATCH: Displaced civilians gather west of Gaza as Israeli forces control 70% of the territory
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
21 July 2026

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