This past Sunday, February 8, Israel’s security cabinet approved sweeping measures to deepen our administrative control over t Judea and Samaria.

Promoted by Defense Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, these decisions repeal outdated Jordanian-era restrictions, allowing Jews to purchase land there as easily as in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem.
They also extend Israeli oversight into Areas A and B for environmental, water, and archaeological enforcement, and transfer building permit authority in Hebron, including the sacred Cave of the Patriarchs, from Palestinian Authority hands to ours.

As reported by The Times of Israel, this overhaul is hailed by Smotrich as a “historic day for the settlements,” enabling the demolition of unauthorized structures on Palestinian land and boosting Jewish settlement expansion .
Ynet News details how these changes create a framework for broader land acquisition, complicating any reversal and drawing sharp rebukes from Arab states as an “unprecedented escalation” .
The BBC notes Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas calling it a “dangerous” bid to legalize settlement growth, while the UN warns of eroding the two-state solution .
Even Haaretz describes it as a “tectonic” shift toward de facto annexation, with settler leaders like Yossi Dagan pushing for full sovereignty .

These moves come amid a surge in settlement activity: Last year saw record expansion, with 52 new outposts legalized, per UN reports. Yet the world’s outcry labels this “annexation,” ignoring the historical reality. Is this aggression, or reclamation?

Land Ownership in the Torah Portion this Week

Mishpatim provides the Torah’s framework for just inheritance. In Exodus 23:20-33, Hashem declares:
“Behold, I am sending an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared… Do not make a covenant with them or with their gods… I will drive them out little by little, until you become fruitful and inherit the land.”
This gradual conquest prevents desolation, mandating resolute stewardship against intermingling with those who oppose our divine claim.

The UN’s “international law” pales against this higher mandate. Settlements fulfill “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates” (Genesis 15:18).

Watching Our Nation Reclaim Its Heritage

From my vantage point in Jerusalem, I see an awakening among the population. Before the October 7 War, you would have been labeled “extremest fringe” to mention annexation. Today, it is openly discussed in the Knesset.

These measures are steps toward the Messianic era, as we continue to bring the Jewish people from the four corrners of the earth and settle the land. As this week’s portion instructs, redemption unfolds gradually.