The Security Cabinet approved a wide-ranging set of measures on Sunday that senior ministers said were intended to strengthen Israel’s administrative and legal control over the West Bank.
The decisions focus on land policy, planning authority, and enforcement powers, and were presented by the government as steps toward what it described as the “normalization” of civilian life for Jewish residents in the area.
According to a joint statement by Defense Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the cabinet ordered the removal of long-standing confidentiality restrictions on land registration records in the West Bank.
Once published, the records are expected to make land transactions more transparent and easier to conduct. Until now, unlike inside Israel’s pre-1967 boundaries, land registries in the West Bank were kept confidential, a situation the ministers said created legal uncertainty, hindered purchases, and enabled fraud.
One of the most significant decisions was the repeal of a Jordanian-era law that barred the sale of land to Jews. Jordan controlled the territory from 1948 until 1967, and parts of its legal framework remained in force.
Under that system, Jews could purchase land only indirectly, through registered companies, and only after receiving a special transaction permit from Israel’s Civil Administration, the military-run body that oversees civilian affairs in the area.
The cabinet canceled the permit requirement and removed restrictions on sales to foreigners, effectively allowing Jews to buy property under conditions similar to those in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. In addition, the requirement for a separate transaction license from the Land Registration Office was eliminated, to be replaced by standard professional criteria.
The cabinet also approved the renewal of the Land Acquisition Committee, a state body that ceased operating roughly two decades ago. Its reinstatement will allow the government to pursue proactive land purchases in the West Bank. Katz and Smotrich said the goal is to secure land reserves for future development of Jewish communities.
Another decision transferred building licensing authority in the Jewish settlement area of Hebron, including sites around the Tomb of the Patriarchs, from the local municipality to the Civil Administration’s planning institutions.
Government officials said this would streamline approval processes and remove the need for case-by-case authorizations for construction or accessibility projects at Jewish holy sites in the city.
Security Cabinet approved expanding Israeli supervision of Areas A, B
The cabinet further decided to expand Israeli supervision and enforcement activities into Areas A and B of the West Bank, administrative divisions established by the Oslo Accords.
The expanded enforcement will focus on water-related violations, environmental hazards, and damage to archaeological sites that Israeli officials say affect the wider region. In locations designated as Area A, primarily Palestinian population centers, the Palestinian Authority has both administrative and security jurisdiction.
In Area B, such as smaller towns, the PA has administrative jurisdiction while Israel maintains responsibility for security. In Area C, where Jewish communities, military installations, and nature reserves are located, Israel has both administrative and security jurisdiction. Area C makes up 60 percent of the territory of the West Bank.
In a related move, the cabinet approved the creation of a dedicated municipal administration for the Rachel’s Tomb complex, a Jewish holy site located within the municipal boundaries of Bethlehem. The new body will be responsible for sanitation, maintenance, landscaping, and daily operations at the site.
“The decisions we approved today are an expression of a clear policy, strengthening the Israeli hold on the West Bank, strengthening settlement and securing our future in this land for generations,” Katz said. “We are committed to removing barriers, creating legal and civil certainty, and enabling residents to live, build, and develop as equals to all citizens of Israel.”
Smotrich was more blunt. “The days are over when a settler in the West Bank was a second-class citizen living under racist Jordanian laws,” he vowed. “We are normalizing life in the West Bank, removing bureaucratic barriers, fighting on the ground, and deepening our grip throughout the Land of Israel.”
Leaders of Jewish communities in the West Bank express hope that US President Donald Trump will revisit the issue of applying Israeli law to Area C of the West Bank.
Mateh Binyamin Regional Council head Israel Ganz praises decision
Israel Ganz, head of the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council, welcomed the move, saying, "This was an absurd situation that is very difficult to explain to people outside Israel. Within one democratic system, under the same security responsibility, two different property regimes existed. An Arab could buy land, while a Jew could not. This discrimination should never have existed, and today it has finally been corrected.”
Alongside lifting the ban, the cabinet decided to open the land registries in the West Bank. Until now, ownership records were largely inaccessible, creating uncertainty and preventing lawful civilian activity. “When it is impossible to know who owns a piece of land, it becomes fertile ground for fraud and fear,” Ganz said. “Opening the registries restores transparency, legal certainty, and the ability to act lawfully, as expected in a modern state.”
The cabinet also addressed the ongoing destruction of historical and archaeological sites throughout the West Bank. Ganz said that for years, ancient heritage sites have been damaged or erased due to quarrying, unregulated construction, and a lack of enforcement. “This is systematic destruction of heritage assets with global historical value,” he said. “These sites do not belong to one people alone; they are part of humanity’s shared history. This neglect must come to an end.”
In addition, the cabinet approved measures to confront severe environmental pollution originating from waste burning and other environmental hazards in the West Bank. According to Ganz, “Years of non-enforcement turned entire areas into pollution hotspots. Polluted air does not stop at lines on a map, and it harms many Israeli citizens. This is not a political issue, but a public health issue.”
Ganz concluded by saying that the decisions reflect a necessary shift in approach. “These are not symbolic or ideological decisions,” he said. “They are decisions of responsibility – responsibility for property rights, for public health, and for protecting history.”
He also thanked Katz and Smotrich for leading the process, stressing that the true test will be full implementation on the ground.