Egypt Daily News – In a move widely seen as a step toward deepening Israeli control over the occupied West Bank, Israel’s government on Thursday approved a significant financial package to expand transportation infrastructure in the territory. The decision, backed by far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, includes over 900 million shekels (approximately $270 million) earmarked for projects aimed at integrating West Bank settlements more closely with Israel proper.
“This is how you apply sovereignty,” Smotrich said in a joint statement with Transport Minister Miri Regev. “This is how you bring in a million residents. This is how you eliminate the idea of a Palestinian terror state.”
The controversial investment is part of what Smotrich described as a “clear strategic plan” to bolster settlements, strengthen physical and political ties between the West Bank and Israel, and convert Israeli control of the territory into an irreversible reality.
The announcement comes at a time of heightened tension and violence in the West Bank, where the Israeli military has intensified operations and settler attacks on Palestinians have surged. In May, the Israeli government approved a major expansion of settlements, drawing condemnation from the international community.
Human rights and peace organizations have slammed the latest infrastructure initiative, warning that it signals a policy of de facto annexation.
“Investing billions into roads, alongside relentless settlement construction and outpost expansion, means one thing: full annexation,” said Peace Now, an Israeli non-governmental organization that monitors settlement activity, in a statement. “Instead of revitalizing neglected areas inside Israel or boosting the economy, the government is diverting money it doesn’t have to fund a dangerous political agenda.”
Critics argue that the investment will not only entrench the occupation but also further complicate any future prospects for a negotiated two-state solution. By improving access and connectivity between settlements and Israel, they say the government is effectively redrawing the map on the ground—without negotiation, and without international consent.
The infrastructure projects include new roads and upgrades to existing networks that link isolated settlements deep in the West Bank to larger urban centers within Israel’s 1967 borders. This, according to the government, is necessary to support the projected growth of the settler population.
Smotrich, a vocal opponent of Palestinian statehood, has consistently advocated for full Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank. His latest remarks appear to frame infrastructure investment as a political tool for achieving long-standing ideological goals.
The developments come as the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict remains unresolved, with diplomatic efforts stalled and violence escalating across the region. For many observers, the approval of this funding represents more than a transportation initiative, it marks a shift in how Israel seeks to solidify its control over contested territory.
Meanwhile, Palestinians continue to face mounting pressures, including home demolitions, land confiscations, military raids, and limited mobility realities exacerbated by infrastructure changes that prioritize settler interests.
While the Israeli government frames the investment as a step toward “integration and development,” peace advocates view it as another blow to the chances of achieving a just and lasting resolution.
The question now, many warn, is not whether the West Bank is being annexed, but how long the world will continue to look the other way.
