Record number of demolitions of illegal Palestinian constructions in the West Bank
The Israeli Civil Administration claims to have demolished 536 structures in the first half of 2026, the highest number recorded during this period
A record number of 536 Palestinian structures deemed illegal were demolished in the West Bank during the first six months of 2026, according to a report published Monday by the Israeli Civil Administration.
The data shows a clear acceleration in operations. After 250 demolitions in the first half of 2022, the number fell to 201 in 2023, before rising to 310 in 2024 and then to 443 in 2025.
The 2026 total thus represents a 21% increase in one year and is more than double the figure recorded in the first half of 2022.
According to the Settlement Administration, a growing number of Palestinians are also choosing to demolish their own buildings in order to avoid intervention by Israeli teams.
Suggested articles
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who is also in charge of the Settlement Administration within the Defense Ministry, presented these figures as the result of a deliberate tightening of Israeli policy in Area C.
He accuses the Palestinian Authority of seeking to impose the creation of a Palestinian state by multiplying unauthorized constructions on land controlled by Israel. Smotrich also claimed that the government had established 104 new settlements and 160 farms, protecting, according to him, more than one million dunams (250,000 acres) of public land.
"For the first time, the number of demolitions exceeds that of new illegal Arab constructions," he said, promising the removal of any structure built without authorization.