What Land and Water Has Israel Allocated to Settlements?
About 450,000 dunams of Area C allocated to the Settlement Division, and what Israeli audits publish on settlement water and outpost land status.
About 450,000 dunams in Area C were allocated by the Custodian of Government and Abandoned Property to the Settlement Division of the World Zionist Organization under permit agreements, for establishing and settling rural localities, on the State Comptroller of Israel’s 2016 audit of the Judea and Samaria Area. The same audit records that about 0.6% of Area C, about 20,845 dunams, was included in Palestinian master plans, some still in approval. On water, the Comptroller’s audit of the Samaria water economy counts 463,000 residents in Jewish localities in Judea and Samaria at the end of 2019 and publishes a single freshwater consumption figure covering Palestinians and Israelis alike. All of these are Israeli audit bodies’ own figures on the state’s own administration.
| Figure | What it counts | Who published it | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| About 450,000 dunams | Area C land allocated by the Custodian to the Settlement Division under permit agreements | State Comptroller of Israel | Audit conducted January to December 2014, checks to December 2015 |
| 120 localities, 87 of them | Israeli localities in Area C, and those established and settled by the Settlement Division | State Comptroller of Israel | Same audit |
| About 20,845 dunams, about 0.6% | Area C included in Palestinian master plans, some still in approval | State Comptroller of Israel | Same audit |
| 463,000 residents | Residents of Jewish localities in Judea and Samaria, about 100,000 of them in Samaria | State Comptroller of Israel | End of 2019 |
| 150.6 million cubic metres | Freshwater consumed by Palestinians and Israelis alike, published as one combined figure | State Comptroller of Israel | Figure given for 2020 |
| 15 of 105 | Unauthorized outposts standing on Palestinian private property | Prime Minister’s Office of Israel | March 2005 |
About 450,000 dunams of Area C went to the Settlement Division
The Comptroller reports about 450,000 dunams in Area C allocated by the Custodian to the Settlement Division of the World Zionist Organization under permit agreements, land the Custodian holds under the government-property regime that defines state land in the area. These are the state auditor’s own figures on the state’s own allocation machinery, drawn from Civil Administration records during an audit conducted in 2014.
- 120 Israeli localities stand in Area C, on the Civil Administration’s own count as relayed by the audit.
- 87 of those 120 were established and settled by the Settlement Division.
- Those 87 localities hold about 100,000 residents.
- The audit publishes no ownership breakdown of the about 450,000 dunams.
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, Annual Report 66b, 2016, p. 58.
About 0.6% of Area C, 20,845 dunams, sits in Palestinian plans
The same 2016 audit records that about 0.6% of Area C, about 20,845 dunams, was included in Palestinian master plans, some of them still in approval at the time of the audit. About 20,000 structures stand in those areas on the Civil Administration’s own June 2014 estimate, which the Comptroller relays rather than measures.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| About 20,845 dunams | Area C included in Palestinian master plans, some in approval | Audit year 2014 |
| About 0.6% | The same area as a share of Area C, printed as an approximation | Audit year 2014 |
| About 20,000 structures | Structures standing in those planned areas, Civil Administration estimate | June 2014 |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, Annual Report 66b, 2016, p. 29. The planning share and the permit allocation above are different measures and are not two parts of one quantity.
The Samaria water audit counts 463,000 residents in Israeli localities
The Comptroller’s audit of selected issues in the Samaria water economy counts 463,000 residents in Jewish localities in Judea and Samaria at the end of 2019, about 100,000 of them in Samaria, and states that the number is expected to grow to about 580,000 by 2030. For consumption it publishes one figure for 2020 covering Palestinians and Israelis alike, with no settlement subtotal and no Palestinian subtotal beside it. The tariffs below are the ones the audit records for supply in the area.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| 463,000 residents | Residents of Jewish localities in Judea and Samaria | End of 2019 |
| About 580,000 | The same population, on the audit’s stated expectation | 2030, expected |
| 150.6 million cubic metres | Freshwater consumed by Palestinians and Israelis alike, one combined figure | Figure given for 2020 |
| 212.9 million cubic metres | The same combined measure, stated as forecast consumption | 2030, forecast |
| 5% and 30% | Water loss in the Israeli supply systems and in the Palestinian systems, on the water master plan | As stated in the plan |
| NIS 0.3 and NIS 3.37 per cubic metre | Samaria water corporation tariff up to the permitted quantity of 3.5 cubic metres per person per month, and above it | As stated in the audit |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, Selected Issues in the Samaria Water Economy, local government audit. For a local authority that has not incorporated, the audit gives NIS 0.468 to NIS 2.272 up to the permitted quantity and NIS 5.583 to NIS 7.387 above it.
15 of 105 outposts stood on Palestinian private property in 2005
The Prime Minister’s Office of Israel published in March 2005 a summary of a commissioned opinion on unauthorized outposts, listing 105 outposts known to the author and stating that the figure probably does not reflect the true number in the area. It is the government’s own review of its own administration, and its land-status categories were compiled from Infrastructure Department data of the Civil Administration, which the author states did not deliver all of it. Of the 105, the opinion places 15 on Palestinian private property and 39 on mixed lands, part State, part survey, part owned by Palestinians.
In the Migron litigation the State did not dispute that the lands at issue are registered under private Palestinian ownership within the villages of Burqa and Dir Dabwan, and that the outpost is illegal; the Supreme Court issued a final order on 2 August 2011 requiring the State to evacuate it. The Supreme Court ordered the Amona outpost removed within two years on 25 December 2014, on the ground that it stood on privately owned Palestinian land without authorisation.
No Israeli body publishes a total of resources transferred to settlements
Across the Israeli publications drawn on here, no consolidated figure appears for land, water, minerals, quarry output or archaeological sites transferred from Palestinian to settlement use. What the Comptroller publishes instead is the state of the registration and enforcement machinery, in its own audits of its own administration.
- The Comptroller’s 2021 audit of staff officers in the Civil Administration records that real estate in Judea and Samaria is registered in hard-copy registers, with no computerised system, and that about four years spent computerising the land registers had not been completed.
- The same audit records that 60% of the real-estate transaction files scanned were scanned without the certification of the transfer of rights, which is the basis for registration in the land registers.
- The 2016 audit records that the Defence Minister decided in December 2013 to establish a unit to conduct criminal investigations of planning and building offences in the area, and that it had not been established at the audit’s close.
Which figures here may not be added together?
The about 450,000 dunams is land allocated under permit agreements and the about 20,845 dunams is planning coverage, so the two are different measures and neither is a subset of the other. The 2016 audit publishes no ownership breakdown of the 450,000 dunams, and the about 100,000 residents belongs to the 87 Settlement Division localities rather than to all 120. The 150.6 million cubic metres covers Palestinians and Israelis together, with no split published, and the 212.9 million cubic metres is stated as a forecast. The 105 outposts is stated as probably not the true number, so the 15 and the 39 sit inside a count that is itself a floor. Every figure printed with “about” keeps it.
Questions readers ask
How much Area C land went to the Settlement Division?
The State Comptroller of Israel reports about 450,000 dunams in Area C allocated by the Custodian to the Settlement Division of the World Zionist Organization under permit agreements, in its 2016 audit.
Does that audit say who owned the land before the allocation?
The State Comptroller of Israel publishes no ownership breakdown of the about 450,000 dunams in that audit.
How many Israeli localities are in Area C?
The State Comptroller of Israel records 120 Israeli localities in Area C, 87 of them established and settled by the Settlement Division, holding about 100,000 residents.
How much of Area C is covered by Palestinian master plans?
The State Comptroller of Israel puts it at about 0.6% of Area C, about 20,845 dunams, some of the plans still in approval at the time of the 2014 audit.
How many structures stand in those planned areas?
The State Comptroller of Israel relays a Civil Administration estimate of about 20,000 structures, the Civil Administration’s own figure from June 2014.
How many residents do Israeli bodies count in Judea and Samaria?
The State Comptroller of Israel counts 463,000 residents in Jewish localities in Judea and Samaria at the end of 2019, about 100,000 of them in Samaria.
Does Israel publish a settlement-only water figure for Samaria?
The State Comptroller of Israel publishes 150.6 million cubic metres of freshwater for 2020 covering Palestinians and Israelis alike, and states no split between them.
What water tariffs does the audit record?
The State Comptroller of Israel records NIS 0.3 per cubic metre set by the Samaria water corporation up to a permitted quantity of 3.5 cubic metres per person per month, and NIS 3.37 above it.
What water loss does the master plan record?
The State Comptroller of Israel reports 5% water loss in the Israeli supply systems in Judea and Samaria on the water master plan, against 30% in the Palestinian systems.
How many outposts stood on Palestinian private land?
The Prime Minister’s Office of Israel published 15 of 105 unauthorized outposts on Palestinian private property in March 2005, on a count the summary states probably does not reflect the true number.
What did the Supreme Court decide about Migron?
The Supreme Court issued a final order on 2 August 2011 requiring the State to evacuate the outpost, after the State did not dispute that the land is registered under private Palestinian ownership.
Is the West Bank land register computerised?
The State Comptroller of Israel states that real estate in Judea and Samaria is registered in hard-copy registers with no computerised system, and that about four years of computerisation had not been completed at the time of its 2021 audit.
Sources
- Israeli Supreme Court, 2011. HCJ 8887/06 al-Nabut v. Minister of Defense (Migron). Judgment of 2 August 2011. Official English translation, Judicial Authority. Official or primary record.
- Israeli Supreme Court, 2014. HCJ 9949/08 Hamad v. Minister of Defense (Amona). Judgment of 25 December 2014. Official or primary record.
- Prime Minister’s Office of Israel, 2005. Summary of the Opinion Concerning Unauthorized Outposts. Communications Department, published 10 March 2005, gov.il. Official record of a government-commissioned review.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2016. Judea and Samaria Area: Activity of the Supervision and Enforcement Unit and Aspects of Land Registration. Annual Report 66b. mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2021. Staff Officers in the Civil Administration in the Judea and Samaria Region. Annual Report 70C, English abstract. mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel. Selected Issues in the Samaria Water Economy. Reports on the audit of local government. mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
