Israel granted Palestinians 66 building permits, settlers 22,000: Report

A stark disparity in West Bank construction permits has been exposed by Israeli daily Haaretz, revealing that Palestinian residents received only 66 building permits from Israeli authorities over an 11-year period, while illegal Jewish settlers were granted 22,000 permits during the same timeframe. The report, published Sunday, covers the years between 2009 and 2020 and highlights a systematic policy that effectively blocks Palestinian development.

Systematic Denial Fuels Demolitions

Haaretz noted that because most of the West Bank is designated as off-limits for Palestinian construction, residents have no choice but to build without permits, leaving their homes vulnerable to demolition. The newspaper cited the ongoing demolition campaign in the Taawun neighborhood, south of Nablus, as a prime example. Located in Area C, the neighborhood has been targeted for demolition since January despite being "far from any settlement or access road." In January alone, the Israeli army demolished 24 Palestinian buildings in Area C for lacking permits.

Sharp Increase in Demolition Rates

Citing data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Haaretz reported that at least 2,461 Palestinian buildings were demolished over the past two years due to the lack of permits. This figure marks a sharp acceleration compared to the 4,984 structures demolished in the previous nine years. As a direct result, approximately 3,500 people have lost their homes in just the last two years. The demolition campaign has coincided with the displacement of around 80 Palestinian communities, driven by the rapid expansion of illegal settler farms and outposts.

Legal Framework and International Law

The discriminatory permit system operates within the framework of the 1995 Oslo II Accord, which divided the West Bank into three areas. Area C, which covers about 61 percent of the territory, remains under full Israeli civil and security control, effectively giving Israel sole authority over planning and zoning in the most resource-rich part of the West Bank. Palestinians view these measures as a de facto annexation that undermines the two-state solution. This practice directly contradicts the July 2024 landmark opinion by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which declared Israel's occupation illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.