Settlements

Since the Naksa (1967 war), Israel has founded over 200 illegal settlements—or colonies—throughout the occupied territories.[1] The settlements represent an illegal “transfer” of a civilian population under Article 49 of Geneva Convention (IV),[2] and have been repeatedly condemned by the UN Security Council.[3] Israeli settlements in the Egyptian Sinai were dismantled in the 1980s and those in the Gaza Strip were dismantled in 2005, but Israel continues to expand its settlements in the West Bank—including East Jerusalem—and Syrian Golan Heights. As of 2017 there were 622,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank[4] and over 23,000 in the Golan.[5]

Sources

1. Including “outpost” settlements B’Tselem. 2019. Statistics on Settlements and Settler Population
2. ICRC. 1949. Geneva Convention (IV) Article 49
3. Eg. UN Security Council. 1980. Resolution 465
4. B’Tselem. 2019. Statistics on Settlements and Settler Population
5. Israeli CBS. 2018. Statistical Abstract of Israel 2.17