1.07 million dunams under control of settlement outposts in the West Bank

A joint statement by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics and the Environment Quality Authority, issued Wednesday on the occasion of Arab Environment Day, revealed that the area of rangelands in the West Bank amounts to about 2,111 square kilometers, or 37% of its area, amid increasing pressures due to settlement expansion and restrictions on shepherds' access to their lands and water sources. The statement, issued under the slogan "Sustainability of Natural Rangelands and Enhancing Resilience," indicated that rangelands constitute an essential environmental and economic resource for pastoral communities, as they are linked to livestock breeding and food security, as well as their role in protecting soil, vegetation cover, and biodiversity. The eastern slopes rangelands constitute about 61% of the total rangeland area in the West Bank. The statement indicated the establishment of 185 new settlement outposts in the West Bank between 2023 and 2025, including about 130 pastoral outposts and settlement hills, dominating an area estimated at about 1.07 million dunams, or about 18% of the West Bank's area. It added that about 300,000 dunams were added to the lands seized by settlers through these outposts during 2025 alone. The statement showed that settler violence and prevention of access to rangelands and water sources led to the displacement of 118 Palestinian pastoral communities and groups between 2023 and 2025. The number of pastoral outposts in the West Bank reached 231, out of about 400 settlement outposts.