Visualizing the Rapid Expansion of Illegal Israeli Settlements and Outposts Across Palestine

A man places the Palestinian flag on the controversial Israeli separation wall, with Israeli settlements showing in the background [File: Ammar Awad/Reuters]

Israeli settlements are Jewish-only communities built illegally on Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. These communities often resemble ordinary suburbs featuring uniform townhouses, red-tiled roofs, and neat lawns situated on hills overlooking fragmented Palestinian towns and villages. In this visual explainer, Al Jazeera maps the continuous spread of illegal Israeli settlements, outposts, and the accompanying settler pogroms, which have reached record levels.

Settlements predate the establishment of Israel in 1948, but their scope expanded significantly following the occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967. Over six decades, the network has evolved from hilltop outposts into an extensive system of towns, roads, and highways connecting them to Israel. Peace Now, an Israeli anti-settlement watchdog, reports at least 148 illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and 15 in occupied East Jerusalem, totaling 163 settlements housing roughly 750,000 Israelis.

An aerial view of the illegal Jewish settlement of Maale Adumim in the occupied West Bank, on June 29, 2020 [Ilan Rosenberg/Reuters]

By 2024, these 163 illegal settlements accommodated 744,700 Israeli settlers, alongside more than 400 illegal outposts that operate without official initial recognition. Under international law, settlements are deemed illegal by the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits an occupying power from transferring its population to occupied territories. The United Nations Security Council, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the International Committee of the Red Cross have consistently affirmed this stance.

While Israeli law officially sanctions and funds settlements like Ariel and Maale Adumim, outposts begin without formal authorization before frequently becoming regularized. Major urban settlements such as Modi’in Illit, Beitar Illit, and Pisgat Ze’ev feature complete municipal infrastructures and are connected by exclusive bypass roads that fragment Palestinian territory and restrict local movement.

A view of ongoing construction in the Modi’in Illit settlement in the occupied West Bank, on February 18, 2017 [Issam Rimawi/Anadolu via Getty]

In August 2025, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich approved more than 3,000 homes in the E1 settlement project near Jerusalem, drawing widespread global condemnation. Meanwhile, Israeli settlers are divided between those motivated by economic incentives and religious-nationalist groups like the "hilltop youth," who establish outposts and attack Palestinian communities. Data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) shows that settler attacks resulting in casualties or property damage surged significantly, averaging about five attacks a day in 2025.