Israel upgrades West Bank settlement Givat Ze'ev to city status

Israel’s Central Command signed a decision on Sunday granting city status to the Givat Ze'ev settlement, located about three miles northwest of Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank. The community, home to more than 35,000 Israeli settlers, will receive expanded municipal powers, additional government funding and easier approval for new housing and infrastructure projects.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the move is part of a broader government policy to reinforce and expand settlements, which the United Nations and most of the international community deem illegal under international law and an obstacle to a two‑state solution.