Israel’s security cabinet on Sunday (February 8, 2026) approved measures that aim to deepen Israeli control over the occupied West Bank and weaken the already limited powers of the Palestinian Authority.

The office of far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in a statement announced the decisions that would make it easier for Jewish settlers to force Palestinians to give up land, adding that “we will continue to bury the idea of a Palestinian state.” Yonatan Mizrachi, a researcher with the Israeli anti-settlement watchdog group Peace Now, called the decision “very significant”. He said the decision still requires approval by Israel’s top commander for the West Bank.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in a statement, called the decision “dangerous” and an “open Israeli attempt to legalise settlement expansion” and land confiscation. He called for the United States and the U.N. Security Council to intervene immediately.

Jordan’s Foreign Ministry condemned the decision, which it said was “aimed at imposing illegal Israeli sovereignty” and entrenching settlements.

The measures include cancelling a prohibition on sales of West Bank land to Israeli Jews, declassifying West Bank land registry records to ease land acquisition, transferring construction planning at religious and other sensitive sites in the volatile city of Hebron to Israeli authorities, and allowing Israeli enforcement of environmental and archaeological matters in Palestinian-administered areas.

The measures also would revive a committee that would allow the state of Israel to make “proactive” land purchases in the territory — “a step intended to guarantee land reserves for settlement for generations to come.”

Peace Now in an explainer issued on late Sunday (February 8, 2026) called the decision aimed at “breaking through every possible barrier on the way to a massive land grab in the West Bank.” Notably, it said, Israeli authorities will be able to demolish construction in Palestinian-controlled areas if they deem it harmful to heritage or the environment.

The West Bank is divided between an Israeli-controlled section where settlements are located and sections equalling 40% of the territory where the Palestinian Authority has autonomy.

Palestinians are not permitted to sell land privately to Israelis. Settlers can buy homes on land controlled by Israel’s government.

Asked about settlers’ claims that the current system is discriminatory against Jews, Mizrachi said the entire system in the West Bank discriminates against Palestinians, who are not allowed to vote in Israeli elections and face Israeli military crackdowns and travel restrictions.

More than 700,000 Israelis live in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories captured by Israel in 1967 and sought by the Palestinians for a future state. The international community overwhelmingly considers Israeli settlement construction in these areas to be illegal and an obstacle to peace.

Mr. Smotrich, previously a firebrand settler leader and now Finance Minister, has been granted cabinet-level authority over settlement policies and vowed to double the settler population in the West Bank.

Settler group Regavim, in a statement, praised Sunday’s decision, saying it would protect heritage sites in the West Bank and “at long last” make land registry accessible and transparent.

In December, Israel’s Cabinet approved a proposal for 19 new Jewish settlements in the West Bank as the government pushes ahead with a construction binge that further threatens the possibility of a Palestinian state. And Israel has cleared the final hurdle before starting construction on a contentious settlement project near Jerusalem that would effectively cut the West Bank in two, according to a government tender reported in January.

India and Israel are likely to sign a bilateral investment treaty during the upcoming visit of Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich this week, while laying the groundwork for a free trade agreement (FTA) to boost trade between the two countries, according to sources.

Mr. Smotrich will be on a three-day visit to India next week between September 8 and 10, during which he will meet Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar.

Besides, the Israeli Finance Minister will also visit Mumbai and the GIFT City in Gandhinagar.

“The aim of this visit is to deepen Israel’s economic and financial ties with India through bilateral meetings and prepare common ground for some of the key agreements, including bilateral investment treaty (BIT) and free trade agreement (FTA),” sources told PTI in Jerusalem.

“Both countries have been negotiating a draft bilateral investment treaty (BIT) and have concluded the negotiations. The Finance Ministers are expected to sign the BIT during the visit.” The BIT between the two countries assures appropriate protection to Israeli and Indian investors, in light of relevant international precedents and practices.

It is likely to enhance the comfort level and boost the confidence of investors by assuring a minimum standard of treatment and non-discrimination, while providing for an independent forum for dispute settlement through arbitration.

Israel has signed BITs with over 15 countries since 2000, including the UAE, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, and South Africa.

“BIT reflects both nations’ shared commitment towards enhancing economic cooperation and creating a more robust and resilient investment environment. The BIT is expected to pave the way for increased bilateral investments, benefiting businesses and economies in both countries,” one of the sources said.

This is the fourth visit by any Israeli Minister to India this year.

Israeli Minister of Tourism Haim Katz, Minister of Economy and Industry Nir Barkat and Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Avi Dichter visited India earlier this year.

India and Israel are strategic partners, and bilateral trade between the countries is close to $4 billion annually.

Cumulative ODI from India to Israel during the period April 2000 to April 2025 was $443 million, and Israel’s direct FDI into India during the period April 2000 – March 2025 was $334.2 million.

As active members of institutions like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, both countries can co-finance Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) backed projects or support joint initiatives in third countries, particularly the global south.