Israel's West Bank building spree is an ideological course correction - Michael Freund

 

by Michael Freund

For too long, Israel allowed international pressure to dictate Jewish life in Judea and Samaria. Terror flourished, deterrence eroded, and our enemies inevitably interpreted restraint as weakness.

 

A general view shows new buildings in the Jewish settlement of Kadim in the West Bank, earlier this year.

(photo credit: NASSER ISHTAYEH/FLASH90)

For decades, Israel was told that its construction in Judea and Samaria was the issue that stood in the way of peace; that bricks and mortar, families, and schools were the obstacles. The Jewish state froze building starts, uprooted communities, dismantled thriving towns, and even expelled Jews from their homes in the naive belief that territorial retreat would buy legitimacy and security. It did neither.

But over the past three years, a quiet and historic revolution has taken place: Israel has returned to building. And it has done so at a record pace.

On December 11, the security cabinet approved 19 new Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, a bold move championed by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz. It includes the rebuilding of Ganim and Kadim in northern Samaria, both of which were forcibly evacuated in 2005 as part of the so-called Disengagement Plan.

The decision brings to 69 the number of new Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria that have been authorized or legalized since the current government was sworn in on December 29, 2022. After years of vacillation, Zionism is once again advancing where it matters most: in the heart of our ancestral homeland.

Settlers celebrate the opening of a new outpost with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, in Jabal Jweihan, near Hebron, West Bank, December 22, 2025 (credit: WISAM HASHLAMOUN/FLASH90)

More than a building spree

This is far more than a building spree. It is a strategic and ideological course correction.

For too long, Israel allowed international pressure to dictate Jewish life in Judea and Samaria. The result was predictable: Terror flourished, deterrence eroded, and Israel’s enemies inevitably interpreted restraint as weakness. The past three years have sent a different message altogether, namely that the Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria is neither temporary nor negotiable.

The decision to authorize the rebuilding of Ganim and Kadim is particularly significant. Their restoration is both a practical and a symbolic repudiation of the warped logic that led to Israel’s 2005 pullout from northern Samaria and Gaza. Rebuilding these communities is an act of historical justice, one that is long overdue.

Yet despite this inspiring trajectory, it is unfortunately necessary to acknowledge a sober reality. Two months ago, US President Donald Trump declared that he would not allow Israel to formally annex Judea and Samaria, stating that it “will not happen.”

For many Israelis and supporters of Israel who remember Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, this was a jarring statement. It suggested that even friendly administrations still believe they have veto power over Jewish self-determination in our own land.

Annexation may be delayed by diplomacy, but sovereignty is not only declared on paper. It is built on the ground. Roads, homes, schools, synagogues, and industrial zones shape reality far more powerfully than press conferences in Washington. If formal annexation is off the table for now, then Israel must do what Zionism has always done best: create irreversible facts on the ground.

History offers a clear lesson. Every inch of Israel’s internationally recognized territory began as a “fact on the ground” contested by diplomats and denounced by critics. Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, the Galilee, and the Negev were not handed to the Jewish people by benevolent powers; they were built, defended, and settled, often in defiance of international opinion. Judea and Samaria are no different.

Moreover, the security argument is unassailable. Israel’s narrow coastal plain, home to the majority of its population and infrastructure, lies exposed beneath the hills of Samaria. Relinquishing control of this high ground would be national suicide. Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria are not ideological luxuries; they are strategic necessities that anchor Israel’s defensive depth and prevent the creation of a hostile Palestinian terror state overlooking Ben-Gurion Airport.

When Israel stops hesitating

The past three years have demonstrated what happens when Israel stops hesitating. Jewish settlement expands, deterrence strengthens, and the narrative shifts. Instead of begging for approval, Israel acts, and the world adjusts. That is how sovereignty works.

This momentum must not be squandered.

Israel’s leadership should accelerate planning approvals, expand infrastructure investment, and encourage Jewish population growth across Judea and Samaria. Bureaucratic bottlenecks that still treat Jewish building as an exception rather than a right must be dismantled. The message should be unmistakable: Jewish life in Judea and Samaria is permanent and irreversible.

Those who warn that continued settlement expansion will foreclose future diplomatic options miss the point entirely. The purpose of Zionism is not to preserve theoretical possibilities for foreign diplomats but to secure the Jewish future. Peace, if it comes, will not result from Israeli retreat but from Arab recognition that the Jewish people are here to stay.

Trump’s reluctance to endorse annexation may disappoint, but it should also clarify Israel’s task: If declarations are constrained, then construction must accelerate.

Zionism was never about waiting for permission. It was about responsibility to our ancestors who dreamed of returning to the Land of Israel; and to our children, who deserve a secure and sovereign future.

The past three years have proven that when Israel chooses resolve over retreat, history bends in our favor. The challenge now is simple: Keep building, keep settling, and keep shaping facts on the ground until what is already true in practice is finally acknowledged in law.

To those who fear expansion, I pose a simple challenge: Name a people in history who prospered by relinquishing territory crucial to their security and heritage. The answer is none.

Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria are not the obstacle to peace. They are a pillar of Jewish resilience and deterrence. A peaceful future will emerge not from retreat but from strength and rootedness.

So let Israel’s leaders seize this moment to entrench our people’s presence and further expand Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria. The land was ours long before foreign capitals tried to restrict us. It will remain ours for as long as Jews walk this Earth, until the end of time. 

Michael Freund served as the deputy communications director under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Source: https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-881307

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