The Take: Inside Israel’s Plan to Turn West Bank Land into ‘State Property’
A renewed focus on land designation policies in the occupied West Bank has brought attention to Israel’s long-standing mechanism of declaring certain areas as “state land.” The policy, rooted in a complex mix of Ottoman-era laws, British Mandate regulations, and Israeli military orders, has become central to debates over settlement expansion, Palestinian land rights, and the future of a two-state solution. As tensions persist across the territory, the issue of land classification is once again at the forefront of political discussion, drawing scrutiny from legal experts, human rights groups, and international actors. What Does “State Property” Mean? Under Israeli administration, land in the West Bank can be designated as “state land” if it is determined not to be privately owned or continuously cultivated according to specific legal criteria. Israeli authorities argue that such declarations are conducted through formal review processes based on historical land laws, particul...
