Israel expands West Bank settlements, tightens Palestinian movement

Since October 7 2023 Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank have killed about 1,200 Palestinians, injured 12,600 and arrested roughly 24,000. They demolished 55 % of the Jenin refugee camp and 40 % of camps in Nur Shams and Tulkarem, forcing more than 40,000 residents to flee—the largest displacement since 1967. Israel also approved 30 new settlements, created 165 outposts and added 2,721 new housing units for settlers, concentrating expansion around Jenin and Hebron.

At the same time Israel tightened control over the Hussein Bridge, the sole crossing for West Bank residents into Jordan, limiting hours and travelers. Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, backed by settler groups and the IDF, threatened the Solomon’s Pools water reservoir—an area under Palestinian civil control per the 1995 Oslo Accords—by expelling bathers and using tear‑gas and police force in July. These actions breach international law and the accords, further undermining Palestinian authority.