Israel Weighs Dismantling Palestinian Authority, Expands Settlements in West Bank
Israeli Officials Discuss Regionalizing West Bank Cities and Advancing Over 10,000 New Settlement Units in 2025.
Watan-The Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported Friday that elements within Israel’s security establishment and government are discussing a plan to dissolve the Palestinian Authority (PA) and divide the West Bank into separate regions. Under the proposal, each Palestinian city would be granted localized administrative powers to deal independently with Israeli authorities and the military. The plan would effectively dismantle the PA, currently led by Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) in Ramallah, and is expected to be tested first in Hebron, where Israel is reportedly encouraging the formation of a local leadership to take control.
A senior Palestinian official responded by saying the Palestinian side has not been officially informed of such a plan and warned that any attempt to divide Palestinian society would be met with widespread rejection. He emphasized that past efforts to isolate parts of Palestine, such as Jerusalem, had failed and that this initiative would likely face a similar fate.
10,000 Additional Settlement Units Approved
In a related development, Yedioth Ahronoth also reported a significant rise in settlement construction across the West Bank. According to data from the Israeli Civil Administration, over 10,000 settlement units have moved forward in 2025—nearly triple the number approved during the same period in 2024, which saw just 3,400 units.
This surge follows a policy shift by the “Settlement Administration,” headed by Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, which now approves new settlement plans weekly. In contrast, the Higher Planning Council convened only three or four times in 2024, often coordinating its activities with the United States. For example, a meeting on March 6, 2024, approved 3,426 units in four settlement expansions, including Efrat, Ma’ale Adumim, and Kedar.
Since December 2024, the council has adopted a weekly schedule. Between January 1 and March 19, it held 12 meetings and approved 10,503 new settlement units—exceeding the total for all of 2024, which was 9,880.
The newspaper highlighted that the new permits are spread across multiple areas, reflecting a strategic expansion policy. Some plans that were previously rejected due to zoning issues are now moving forward. For instance, a plan for 156 units in the settlement of Otniel was recently approved by proposing bridge construction over private land to connect it with designated “state land.” This indicates coordinated efforts between settlers and Israeli officials to reshape the territorial and political reality in the occupied West Bank.
