Israel Repeals Disengagement Law from West Bank Passed Nearly 20 Years Ago

Israeli soldiers guard the entrance to the Homesh settlement evacuated as part of the 2005 disengagement. Photo: Nasser Ishtayeh/Times of Israel

Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, voted last week in favor of repealing the disengagement law that was passed in 2005 that resulted in the evacuation of settlements in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Although the ban on settlement construction will remain in force for the Gaza Strip, Israelis will now be permitted to return to four settlements in the northern West Bank, Sa-Nur, Ganim, Kadim, and Homesh, as soon as the bill is signed by an Israeli military commander. The move to expand settlement activity has provoked condemnation from Palestinian, EU, and US officials, who consider it counterproductive to improving relations and de-escalating violence. A spokesperson for Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas denounced the reversal as deterring efforts to de-escalate tensions and claimed Israel was in violation of international law. 

At a summit with Palestinian Authority officials just days before the Knesset voted on the repeal, Israel reaffirmed pledges to halt settlement expansion plans for four months. Also present at the negotiations in Sharm el-Sheikh were delegations from the US, Jordan, and Egypt. In a joint statement released, both sides agreed to the “prevention of further violence” and acknowledged the “legal right” of the Palestinian Authority to exercise security control over area A of the West Bank, where it has full civil and security jurisdiction. Despite pledges, it is clear that Netanyahu’s government intends to make settlement construction a top priority. Just before being sworn into office, the Netanyahu coalition released agreements that emphasized the government’s commitment to “Advance and develop settlement in all parts of the land of Israel.” In February, the government approved the planning and construction of nearly 10,000 housing units in existing settlements, in addition to retroactively legalizing nine outposts in the West Bank. 

A Palestinian in Gaza protests the summit meeting at Sharm el-Sheikh. Photo: Mahmud Hams/AFP

Among Netanyahu’s allies in the Knesset and much of the Israeli settler community, the vote was met with praise and celebration. Yuli Edelstein, an MK who sponsored the bill, celebrated the move as a long-awaited triumph; “Seventeen years of attempts, an uncompromising struggle, and a strong belief in the righteousness of this path converged into one moment when the Knesset plenum voted in favor of canceling the Disengagement Law.” Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, who currently lives in the settlement of Kiryat Arba in Hebron, said the repeal corrects a “historic injustice.” MK Son Har-Melech, a former resident of Homesh whose husband was killed in a terrorist attack nearby, commended the vote; “We’re undoing this crime…No longer will we be so-called occupiers in our land.” 

Since the 2005 disengagement, settlers have attempted to return to evacuated villages including Homesh. Just a few years after Homesh residents were removed by Israeli soldiers, a Jewish religious school, or yeshiva, was established at the site of the Homesh settlement. Though the yeshiva was illegally constructed under Israeli law, tensions between its students and the Palestinians living in the nearby city of Burqa have resulted in harassment and violence. According to a local resident of Burqa, Abu Umar, many of the city’s Palestinian residents have routinely faced harassment from Israeli settlers and in some cases violent attacks. He emphasized that by reversing the disengagement violence from both sides will continue. 

The reversal has also drawn strong disapproval from US and EU officials. An EU spokesperson warned that the reconstruction of settlements “Hampers the possibility to pursue confidence-building measures,” representing a “clear step back” from reaching a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A statement from a Biden Administration spokesperson echoed these concerns; “Coming at a time of heightened tensions, the legislative changes announced today are particularly provocative and counterproductive to efforts to restore some measures of calm.” Under the Netanyahu administration, Israel has already received fierce backlash from the international community for proposing a controversial judicial overhaul. A growing number of Israelis from all sectors have also expressed opposition to these reforms, sparking mass protests across Israel.