{"id":57985,"date":"2026-06-16T19:23:06","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T16:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/?p=57985"},"modified":"2026-06-16T19:41:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T16:41:11","slug":"israel-revokes-palestinian-planning-authority-in-central-hebron","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/israel-revokes-palestinian-planning-authority-in-central-hebron","title":{"rendered":"Israel Revokes Palestinian Planning Authority in Central Hebron"},"content":{"rendered":"

On June 10, 2026, the Higher Planning Council of Israel\u2019s Civil Administration (HPC) decided<\/a> to assume planning and construction powers from the Palestinian Municipality of Hebron with regard to Israeli settlements in the heart of the city and a number of religious sites. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich described the move as the \u201ccancellation of the Hebron Agreement”, while the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied that it is canceling the agreement. However, the decision represents another step in Israel\u2019s formal erosion of commitments made under previous agreements, the dismantling of Palestinian governing mechanisms in Hebron, and the extension of direct Israeli authority into one of the largest Palestinian cities in the West Bank.<\/p>\n

The decision<\/a> implements a February 2026 cabinet resolution<\/a> (No. B\/229) under which Israel resolved to take over planning and construction powers in Hebron and around Rachel\u2019s Tomb in Bethlehem. Until now, these powers had been held by the Hebron Palestinian Municipality. Only in exceptional cases\u2014such as projects at the Tomb of the Patriarchs<\/a> and the settlement project at the former central bus station<\/a>\u2014had Israel assumed planning authority on a case-by-case basis.<\/p>\n

Under the Higher Planning Council\u2019s decision<\/a>, all planning and construction powers previously exercised by the Palestinian local planning committee will be transferred to Israeli authorities in matters “falling under the jurisdiction of the Civil Services Administration for the Jewish community in Hebron”, as well as in relation to eight religious sites. These include the Tomb of the Patriarchs, Jewish cemeteries, the Tomb of Yishai and Ruth, and the Tomb of Othniel ben Kenaz, which is located in the H1 area.<\/p>\n

The “Civil Services Administration for the Jewish community in Hebron” was established in 2017<\/a>, and is functioning as a de facto local authority exclusively for Israeli settlers in Hebron. Its jurisdiction applies to<\/a> all \u201csettlers and property owned or held by settlers in the H2 area<\/strong>“, This is an unusual jurisdictional framework that distinguishes between populations rather than territory: authority is determined according to whether residents are settlers or Palestinians, rather than by a defined geographic area.<\/p>\n

As a result, all planning schemes and building permits concerning settlers in Hebron will now be processed directly through the Civil Administration\u2019s planning institutions, without any involvement from the Palestinian Municipality of Hebron. Planning matters concerning Palestinians in the same area will continue to be handled by the Palestinian municipality.<\/p>\n

\n

Peace Now:<\/strong> \u201cAfter promising victory and failing on every front, Smotrich the arsonist is trying to set the West Bank ablaze. This is a dangerous and irresponsible step by a politician willing to harm Israel\u2019s interests and security in order to win a few far-right votes from Ben Gvir. The measure is based on an apartheid principle, deepening the de facto application of Israeli sovereignty in occupied territory, weakening the Palestinian Authority, and further undermining the prospects for a political agreement based on two states.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The decision carries significant political implications. Planning and construction powers in Hebron were transferred to the Palestinian Authority under the 1997 Hebron Protocol, signed by Benjamin Netanyahu and Yasser Arafat. The agreement divided the city into H1, under full Palestinian control, and H2, where Israel retained security control while civilian administration remained in the hands of the Hebron Municipality. Despite Israel\u2019s military presence in H2, civil and planning authority remained with the Palestinian Authority.<\/p>\n

The February 2026 cabinet decision<\/a> and the June 2026 Higher Planning Council decision effectively overturn that arrangement with respect to settlements and designated religious sites in Hebron, transferring planning and construction authority to Israeli planning bodies.<\/p>\n

The move could have far-reaching consequences for Hebron\u2019s Old City and the Tomb of the Patriarchs\/Ibrahimi Mosque compound. Among other things, it would enable the advancement of construction, development, and infrastructure projects for settlements and religious sites without requiring approval from Palestinian authorities.<\/p>\n

The decision is the latest in a series of measures advanced by the Israeli government in recent years to transfer powers from Palestinian institutions to Israeli authorities, including previous steps concerning planning and construction in area B<\/a> defined as “Agreed Upon Reserve”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On June 10, 2026, the Higher Planning Council of Israel\u2019s Civil Administration (HPC) decided to assume planning and construction powers from the Palestinian Municipality of Hebron with regard to Israeli settlements in the heart of the city and a number of religious sites. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich described the move as the \u201ccancellation of the… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":37626,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[20,3232,2525],"class_list":["post-57985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-settlement-watch","tag-hebron","tag-higher-planning-council","tag-planning"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57985"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57985\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57988,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57985\/revisions\/57988"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacenow.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}