The population statistics for Israeli settlements in the West Bank are collected by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. As such, the data contains only population of settlements recognized by the Israeli authorities. Israeli outposts, which are illegal by Israeli law, are not tracked, and their population is hard to establish. All settlements in the West Bank were advised by the International Court of Justice to be unlawful.[1]
As of January 2023, there are 144 Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including 12 in East Jerusalem.[2] In addition, there are over 100 Israeli illegal outposts in the West Bank. In total, over 450,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank excluding East Jerusalem, with an additional 220,000 Jewish settlers residing in East Jerusalem.[3][4]
The construction of the West Bank barrier keeps a significant number of settlements behind it. The total number of settlers east of the barrier lines in 2012 was at least 79,230. By comparison, the number of Gaza Strip settlers in 2005 who refused to move voluntarily and be compensated, and that were forcibly evicted during the Israeli disengagement from Gaza, was around 9,000.[5]
- ^ See the advisory opinion in Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory [2004] ICJ 3
- ^ "Jerusalem". Peace Now. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
- ^ "Growth rate of settlements plummets to all-time low". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 5 September 2021. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ^ "Population". Peace Now. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
- ^ For prior statistics, see Population statistics for Israeli Gaza Strip settlements.
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