JNS
"This is a historic decision which could impact change," a spokesperson for Construction and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf told JNS.
Israel Defense Forces Central Command head Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth on Sunday extended to Judea and Samaria urban renewal legislation previously only in effect within Israel's 1949 armistice lines.
The order could spur a surge in building in the region, including but not limited to the recognized cities such as Modi'in Illit, Beitar Illit, Ma'ale Adumim and Ariel.
The move was a joint project of the Construction and Housing Ministry, the Defense Ministry and its Civil Administration, the Authority for Urban Renewal, the Israel Tax Authority and other Israeli agencies.
The directive "opens the door for companies and entrepreneurs to promote urban renewal, [including] renovation and construction projects in a new market—within the scope of the Israeli local authorities in Judea and Samaria," according to a statement from the Construction Housing Ministry.
The ministry noted however that implementation would require planning on the part of the the Civil Administration.
"This is a historic decision which could impact change," a spokesperson for Construction and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf told JNS.
Under the order, for example, "If you have an older building in a city within Judea and Samaria, which is two or three floors high, you can renovate and turn it into a six-floor housing structure. This doubles the capacity which the building can hold," he said. "At the same time the city is working on this expansion project, they will be given additional funding to fix roads, renovate parks, build schools, and other projects towards urban renewal," he added.
While it is "very difficult" to carry out new construction projects in Judea and Samaria, "these units are already built, and are just in need of renovation and expansion," he continued. This means that the order will make it easier to bring in new residents "without for example creating any rifts with the Americans."
Israel Ganz, head of the Binyamin Regional Council, told JNS: "We applaud every step which likens the rights of the residents of Judea and Samaria with those throughout the rest of the country."
Ganz, who also heads the Yesha Council umbrella group of Judea and Samaria local authorities, said the move "rectifies many years of discrimination towards Judea and Samaria. It is time for the leadership of the State of Israel to conclude that the status of Judea and Samaria is no different from that of Tel Aviv and Sderot, on all matters."
A spokesperson for Ariel echoed Ganz's remarks, praising Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, the head of IDF Central Command "and all partners" for initiating "this important move."
"The citizens of Ariel and Samaria are entitled to the same conditions as the rest of the country. Anyone with a head on his shoulders understands that the legal mechanism that exists throughout the country must be the same in the city of Ariel. This is a long process, and with God's help we will reap its fruits in the near future," he told JNS.
Israel's Regavim Movement NGO, which has conducted extensive research on Israel's land-use policies, also welcomed the new order.
"Since its founding 19 years ago, Regavim has advocated for the integration of Judea and Samaria into Israeli master-planning projects. This translates into parity in permit, licensing and registration procedures and transparency of these processes. Regavim’s planning division continues to work toward these important policy objectives," said Naomi Kahn, director of the international division of the organization, which is dedicated to the protection of Israel’s national lands and resources.
"Israel’s national resources—land, water, environment and more—are a single, organic body and any national planning regime that fails to include the territories that are the very heart of the Land of Israel will necessarily be incomplete and inadequate," she added.
The order, she told JNS, would have far-reaching impact, jump-starting a 10% increase in residential units in the first year alone.
Regavim director-general Meir Deutsch called the order a "welcome first step" toward "rational planning and normalization of life for all residents of the region."
However, Nadia Matar, co-chair of the Sovereignty Movement, which promotes Israeli sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, told JNS that while her organization applauds the order, it falls short.
"No matter how many housing units are built, it doesn't change the official status of the area," she said. Matar disagreed that the order would create normalization, with "one law for Efrat and Ra'anana" as stated by Smotrich, who is also responsible for civilian issues in Judea and Samaria.
"Ra'anana is under Israeli sovereignty but Efrat is not, even if you build another 20,000 buildings there," she told JNS
The time has come for Israel to extend sovereignty over the entire area, she said. "Without sovereignty, there will always be doubts regarding whether Israel will keep these areas."
