(Photo: Anadolu)
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Thursday he intends to expand Jewish settlement and development efforts in the Negev and Galilee, a day after highlighting settlement expansion and demolitions of Palestinian structures in the occupied West Bank.
In a post on X, Smotrich said the government would pursue in the Negev and Galilee what he described as an expanded version of policies implemented in the West Bank. He has previously called for establishing dozens of new communities in the two regions and encouraging large-scale Jewish migration there.
Smotrich has also publicly promoted accelerated settlement growth in the occupied West Bank. Recent reporting has documented a sharp rise in settlement approvals, outposts and demolitions of Palestinian structures under the current Israeli government.
The Negev and Galilee both have significant Arab Palestinian populations alongside Jewish communities, making land use, housing and development policy politically sensitive.
International bodies and most governments consider Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal under international law, a position Israel disputes.
Smotrich also accused Western countries of seeking to weaken Israel’s regional position and said his policies were intended to strengthen Israeli control and settlement in areas he considers strategically important.
