The cabinet authorized on Sunday the opening of a land registration process in the West Bank for the first time since 1967, with the ministers who initiated the measure saying it would enable the registration of broad swaths of land as state land available for Israeli development.

The resolution authorized an initial budget of NIS 244 million ($79 million) for the land registration process in the years 2026 to 2030 in Area C of the West Bank, where Israel has full military and civilian control, and the establishment of 35 positions in various ministries and state agencies to conduct the registration work.

The explanatory text of the resolution noted, however, that the registration process will be lengthy and take at least a year and a half for every plot of land, if not more, and that registering all non-registered land in Area C could take up to 30 years.

The process of establishing the registration mechanisms could itself take a year and a half, the resolution stated, but nevertheless set a goal of registering 15 percent of the unregistered land within five years.

The Palestinian presidency condemned the step, saying it constitutes “a de facto annexation of occupied Palestinian territory and a declaration of the commencement of annexation plans aimed at entrenching the occupation through illegal settlement activity.”

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Jordan’s Foreign Ministry, in a statement, called on the international community to “assume its legal and moral responsibilities, and to compel Israel, the occupying power, to stop its dangerous escalation.”

Defense Minister Israel Katz, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and Justice Minister Yariv Levin lauded the decision, saying it will create legal certainty in the territory and protect the national interest.


A Palestinian man plows a small field in an olive grove in the West Bank on November 4, 2025. (John Wessels/ AFP)

The cabinet decision follows a controversial decision by the security cabinet last week that expanded Israeli oversight and enforcement activities into areas A and B of the West Bank, where the Palestinian Authority has military or civilian control, and enabled private Israeli citizens to buy land in the territory, something not previously possible.

Up until 1967, only about one-third of all land in the West Bank was formally registered in land registration processes conducted during the period of the British Mandate and then under Jordanian control from 1949 to 1967.

Israel halted that process in 1968, a year after it captured the West Bank, and it has never resumed until now.

The new registration process will only take place in Area C, which constitutes some 60% of the entire territory and where, like the rest of the West Bank, some two-thirds of the land is not formally registered.

The Oslo Accords Israel and the PA signed in the 1990s placed Area C under Israeli security and administrative control, but they stated that the territory should be gradually transferred to Palestinian jurisdiction.

While stopping short of formally annexing the entire territory amid opposition from US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has passed a slew of measures aimed at cementing Israel’s control over Area C — along with other parts of the West Bank.

The terms of the cabinet resolution initiated by the defense, finance, and justice ministers instructed the commander of the IDF’s Central Command — the de facto military governor of the West Bank — to authorize the Land Registry department in the Justice Ministry to carry out the land registration process.
The Land Registry will establish a land settlement directorate to conduct the work.

Along with the initial budget of NIS 244 million for the next four years, 35 new positions will be created in the Justice Ministry, the Survey of Israel mapping agency, the Defense Ministry, and its Civil Administration department to carry out the work.


Efrat, Gush Etzion, in the West Bank, July 31, 2025. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

“This matter is consistent with the needs of the area, particularly in light of the passage of time and the uncertainty that has arisen with respect to some locations, while respecting local law to the extent possible,” the resolution stated.

It also said that the process came to counter a similar land registration process being conducted by the Palestinian Authority, including in Area C, which it said the PA was barred from carrying out under the terms of agreements signed with Israel.

The Peace Now and Yesh Din organizations, which campaign against the settlement movement, denounced the decision, saying it was another step in Israel’s de facto annexation of the West Bank, with the former appealing directly to US President Donald Trump to halt the move.

A source in Peace Now said that although in theory there could be a fair and objective land registration process for all parties in the West Bank, it would be very hard under current conditions and regulations for Palestinians to prove and assert their ownership claims.

The source said this shift would likely lead to the declaration of hundreds of thousands of dunams of land in the territory as state land, meaning it will be available to Israel for the development of settlements, infrastructure, and transportation.

While state land is supposed to be managed for the benefit of all civilians, Israel makes it available almost exclusively for settlers.

“The government has approved a massive land grab in the West Bank on the way to de facto annexation, in complete contradiction to the will of the people and the Israeli interest,” Peace Now said, in response to the decision.

“We are warning President Trump — Netanyahu is deceiving you. You said you would not allow annexation, but he is annexing right under your nose.”

Trump has said on several occasions, including last week, that he opposes the annexation of the West Bank by Israel, but organizations opposed to Israeli control of the territory have said that his position ignores measures taken by the current government that are de facto tightening Israeli control over the West Bank.

The cabinet ministers who initiated the new land registry process extolled the cabinet decision.

“The resolution constitutes a real revolution in Judea and Samaria,” said Justice Minister Levin, using the biblical term for the West Bank. “The Land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel. The Israeli government is committed to deepening its grip on all parts [of the land], and this decision is an expression of that commitment.”

Smotrich, the finance minister, said the measure was “continuing the revolution of settlement and the grip on all parts of our country,” and claimed the new land registration process would “prevent conflict, create legal certainty… and enable legal and responsible development” in the West Bank.

Agencies contributed to this report.