Israeli Authorities Double Demolition of Illegal Palestinian Structures in West Bank

A new report from the Civil Administration's oversight unit reveals a sharp increase in enforcement actions against illegal Palestinian construction in the West Bank during the first half of 2026. The data shows a steady rise in demolitions over recent years: from 250 structures destroyed in the first half of 2022, a slight dip to 201 in 2023 due to the war outbreak, then climbing to 310 in 2024, 443 in 2025, and reaching a peak of 536 demolitions in early 2026.

Alongside official demolitions, the report notes a growing trend of Palestinians preemptively demolishing their own illegal buildings to avoid intervention by Israeli enforcement forces. Bezalel Smotrich, the Minister in the Defense Ministry responsible for the Settlement Division, described the increase as part of a deliberate policy shift. He criticized previous Israeli inaction against what he called "Salam Fayyad’s plan" to establish facts on the ground through massive illegal construction aimed at creating a Palestinian state.

Smotrich highlighted that since the current government took office, it has initiated a "revolution" in the West Bank, including the establishment of 104 new settlements and 160 farms protecting over one million dunams of state land. He emphasized a firm stance against illegal Arab land takeover and praised the enforcement unit’s work, noting that for the first time demolitions exceed illegal Palestinian construction. He vowed that all illegal construction will be removed moving forward.