New Israeli rules tighten grip on West Bank, and Palestinians say annexation is already here

Israel’s Security Cabinet approved new measures that tighten Israel’s control over the occupied West Bank, including changes that would make it easier for Jewish settlers to acquire land. The developments were reported by NBC News, and Palestinians say the steps amount to annexation in practice even without a formal declaration.

The rules are expected to have an immediate impact in places such as Hebron, where Jewish settlements sit inside the city. Palestinian officials said the changes further entrench unequal conditions, and Hebron’s governor, Khaled Dudin, described the situation as apartheid.

Ministers also voted to begin a land registration process for the first time since 1967, when Israel took control of the territory from Jordan during the Six-Day War. Israeli officials described the move as administrative and aimed at clarifying property rights, while Palestinian leaders and advocacy groups warned it could accelerate state claims over land.

The measures shift authority and expand settlement pathways

In Hebron, the changes would make it simpler to expand settlements near the Ibrahimi Mosque, a site sacred to Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. The local Palestinian governorate would lose planning and building authority, with those powers shifting to Israeli officials instead.

Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry described the land registration process on X as an administrative step intended to clarify rights and resolve legal disputes. It said the process would protect property rights for Israelis and Palestinians, and the same week also saw the Strait of Hormuz closure.

Peace Now, an Israeli humanitarian organization, warned that the legislation could require Palestinians to prove ownership under conditions it said are nearly impossible to meet. It said land could be registered in Israel’s name if owners cannot produce documentation, a risk compounded by the fact that only about a third of the land was formally registered under Jordanian rule, and many people lacked papers or lost them during the conflict.

Residents described daily life in Hebron’s Old City as increasingly constrained by barriers, military checkpoints, and curfews intended to protect the settlers in the historic center. Nets cover parts of the Old City streets, installed to catch rocks and debris that residents say settlers throw down on Palestinian pedestrians.

Monzer Shawamla, a 35-year-old baker in Hebron’s Old City, told NBC News that Palestinians have faced harassment and humiliation from Israeli soldiers and settlers since the October 7, 2023, attack. He said his bakery is among the few still operating in the UNESCO-listed area, with many other shops closed because of a lack of customers or shutdowns by Israeli forces.

Palestinian leaders said the West Bank is essential to any future independent state and condemned the measures. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called for a decisive stance from the United States and the international community, and Western governments expressed concern while condemnation spread across parts of the Middle East.

Neither the White House nor the State Department issued statements specifically about the new measures, according to NBC News. It was unclear whether the issue was raised when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met President Donald Trump last week, and Trump said in an interview that he opposed annexation while adding that there were other issues to focus on.

Netanyahu has argued that a Palestinian state would pose a security threat, and members of his ruling coalition have openly supported annexation. Legal scrutiny also expanded through the Israeli sniper Chile court, as Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has said he wants to double the settler population in the West Bank and was part of the Cabinet that approved 19 new settlements in December.

Shawamla said he intends to keep his family business open, with support from Dudin’s governorate, which provides flour and semolina to Old City shops. He said continued backing would help them keep working for as long as they can.