• Israel's Security Cabinet approved new measures to expand settlements in the West Bank.
• The changes include repealing laws that restrict land purchases by Jews.
• Increased Israeli oversight is imposed in areas under Palestinian Authority control.
• Officials claim these actions are aimed at normalizing life for settlers.
• Palestinian authorities condemned the measures as an attempt to annex the territory.

The Israeli government has approved a series of measures designed to significantly increase Israeli control over the occupied West Bank, aiming to bolster settlement activity in the region. This decision was announced by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz, who described the measures as fundamentally changing "the legal and civil reality" in what some call Judea and Samaria, the biblical terms for the West Bank. Katz noted the importance of strengthening Israeli presence there, citing national and Zionist interests, while Smotrich emphasized an interest in reinforcing Israeli roots and hindering the prospect of a Palestinian state, according to aa and lemonde.

To facilitate these objectives, the Security Cabinet's decisions include the removal of laws that restrict Palestinian land sales to Jewish buyers and the transfer of authority over building permits in settlement areas, including Hebron, from Palestinian municipality control to Israeli authorities. These changes are expected to simplify the process for Israeli settlers to acquire land and build settlements, ultimately leading to the expansion of Israeli control in the territory, as highlighted by middleeasteye and lemonde.

These measures extend Israeli enforcement into areas typically controlled by the Palestinian Authority, allowing for oversight concerning alleged violations—including those related to unlicensed construction and resource management. This is seen as an encroachment on Palestinian sovereignty and could result in further demolitions and property seizures even in areas where the Palestinian Authority has administrative powers, according to middleeasteye and aa.

The Palestinian Authority has condemned these recent developments, stating that they reflect an ongoing attempt to annex the West Bank. Officials claim these actions violate previous agreements between the Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel, as well as international laws. They further express concerns regarding the implications for important religious sites, particularly in Hebron, where control over the Ibrahimi Mosque is transferred to Israeli oversight, worsening tensions in an already volatile area, as reported by lemonde and middleeasteye.