Israeli ministers and lawmakers convened on Wednesday to mark the formal establishment of Metzoke Eretz, a newly legalized settlement in the West Bank. The ceremony highlighted Israel’s ongoing efforts to legitimize settlements and outposts in the territory, amid controversy over their impact on Palestinian communities.
Metzoke Eretz, previously known as the Netzah Harel outpost, was founded in 2023 near the Bedouin Mu’arrajat al-Markaz community. Its structures were constructed partly on private Palestinian land and partly on state-designated territory. The outpost’s presence reportedly forced the displacement of local Palestinian residents later that year. The government’s legalization of Metzoke Eretz is part of a broader move during the last Israeli administration, which approved the legalization of 104 settlements and outposts. Among these, 19 cases involved the formal recognition of settlements from which nearby Palestinian populations had been expelled since 2022, often with documented involvement by settlers themselves.
The inauguration event included several prominent figures from Israel’s political landscape, including Ministers Yaziv Levin, Bezalel Smotrich, Nir Barkat, Shlomo Karhi, and Ze’ev Elkin. Far-right Knesset member Limor Son Har-Melech and media figure Yaakov Bardugo, a candidate on the Likud party list, also participated. Speaking at the ceremony, Smotrich emphasized the government’s investment in security, public infrastructure, and agricultural support in the settlements. He described these measures as preparatory steps for accommodating “a million settlers.” Smotrich also criticized comments by Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman suggesting that Jordan should assume control over Areas A and B of the West Bank, framing such views as a “loss of moral compass.”
Minister Levin framed the establishment of Metzoke Eretz as part of an “unprecedented construction boom in Judea and Samaria,” reinforcing the government’s commitment to expanding the settlement movement. Karhi linked the progress to the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, asserting that only a “national government” under Netanyahu would maintain momentum toward settlement growth and national security.
An investigation published earlier this year revealed that many recently legalized settlements follow patterns previously avoided by Israel, including the use of land that was formerly military bases or designated as private Palestinian property. In particular, 44 of the newly authorized settlements were established on land not officially recognized as state territory. Reports by NGOs Peace Now and Kerem Navot highlighted that large tracts of land allocated to farm outposts, totaling hundreds of thousands of dunams, are not legally state-owned and were assigned non-transparently in coordination with Israeli political and military authorities. Since the outbreak of recent conflicts, residents of these outposts have reportedly engaged in actions that caused significant distress and displacement within surrounding Palestinian communities.