Government to Transfer 1 Billion Shekels to Settlements in Closed Session Amid Fears of International Criticism

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided tonight, Thursday, to postpone the government discussion on allocating 1 billion shekels for the establishment of dozens of new settlements in the West Bank. The discussion on the funds was moved to a meeting of the political and security cabinet in order to keep the decision confidential, apparently in an effort to avoid international criticism.

Netanyahu’s decision to move the discussion to the cabinet meeting came after the issue was listed on the agenda for the government session, under the heading, "Establishing temporary sites in localities approved for establishment in the rural area of Judea and Samaria." Although the item appeared on the government agenda, the details of the decision have not yet been published on the government secretariat’s website.

The money is in effect intended to finance infrastructure and buildings in new settlements whose establishment the government has approved over the past three years. As is known, since its formation in December 2022, the government has approved the establishment of 103 new settlements. Some of them previously existed as "neighborhoods" of existing settlements, and some as illegal "outposts," and the decision will allow them to be legalized.

The decision in question concerns 61 settlements, and according to the draft, hundreds of millions of shekels will be allocated to the Settlement Division for the establishment of "temporary sites" in them. In each "temporary site," the division will fund the construction of 15 residential caravans and two caravans for public buildings. In addition, the draft decision allocates hundreds of millions of shekels to the Housing Ministry for infrastructure work, including road access, land preparation, sewage, water, and more, for those new settlements. Millions will also be allocated for "community coordinators" who will accompany the "initial settlement nucleus" of each of the settlements.