When Netanyahu was sworn in as prime minister for a record sixth time, he had secured his victory by allying with ultra-nationalist figures who had long sought to expel the Palestinians from the West Bank and seize their lands.
At the forefront of these are Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir. After being marginal figures a decade ago, they today hold the positions of Minister of Finance and Minister of National Security, respectively. They have made their campaign in the West Bank a core political priority, in cooperation with hardline Defense Minister Yisrael Katz.
After about four years, the countdown to the end of this government began. Israel will hold national elections on October 27, in an event widely viewed as a referendum on Netanyahu's leadership since the October 7 attacks. This will be the first time since 1988 that the Knesset will complete its full parliamentary session; It is a government - despite all its internal rifts - that has succeeded in holding out long enough to reshape the reality of the West Bank.
Benjamin Netanyahu chose three key figures – Bezalel Smotrich, Itamar Ben Gvir, and Yisrael Katz – to lead several aspects of his government's strategy in the West Bank.
Bezalel Smotrich
Upon the formation of the government in 2022, Smotrich not only assumed the position of Minister of Finance, but was also given a ministerial role within the Ministry of Defence; It is a position he exploited to engineer a radical shift in how the West Bank is governed.
Smotrich is one of the ideological leaders of the settler movement. He leads the "Religious Zionism" party, lives in a settlement himself, and calls his policies the "settler revolution."
Smotrich called for the annexation of 82% of the West Bank and for the collapse of the Palestinian Authority that governs parts of these territories.
At the Ministry of Defense, Smotrich was given powers over the Civil Administration, the body responsible for enforcing building codes in the West Bank. He also assumed responsibility for the newly established Settlements Administration.
Substantial administrative and legal powers - previously in the hands of military commanders - were transferred to civilian employees supportive of the settlement, working under his direct supervision.
As Finance Minister, Smotrich also controls the flow of billions of shekels arriving at outposts and settlements, including providing settlers with all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), drones, and night vision equipment.
Itamar Ben Gvir
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is in charge of the police force and has pushed for enhanced security control of the West Bank.
In 2007, Ben Gvir was convicted of racist incitement against Arabs. He also provided support to extremist groups linked to an Orthodox rabbi born in the United States; These are groups previously classified by Washington as terrorist organizations, and are still prohibited under Israeli law.
Before joining the government, Ben Gvir worked as a lawyer who defended several far-right Jewish figures and groups, including the Hilltop Youth group, whose members were accused of hate crimes and terrorist acts.
Members of the Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) party, which Ben Gvir leads, do not hesitate to show their support for settler violence. The Israeli Attorney General opened an investigation into an incident earlier this month in which two senior party members allegedly assaulted police officers and helped a Jewish suspect - accused of committing violence against Palestinians - escape police custody. For their part, party members described this move as "political persecution."
Under Ben Gvir in office, the department responsible for nationally motivated crimes has reduced the scope of its activities. The level of coordination between it and the “Jewish Section” of the General Security Service (Shin Bet) - which provides the intelligence information necessary to arrest those involved in national crimes committed by Jews - also deteriorated. Official police data released in July shows that investigations into incidents of Israeli settler violence and nationalist-motivated crimes in the West Bank have risen by more than 560% since 2019, but only 6.6% of these cases have resulted in indictments.
Ben Gvir also made it easier for Israeli civilians throughout Israel and the West Bank to own firearms, and led a campaign to distribute tens of thousands of assault rifles to settlers and volunteer civilian security forces. He stated that the aim of this is to prevent future attacks similar to what happened on October 7th.
Yisrael Katz
Yisrael Katz took office as Defense Minister in November 2024. One of his first steps was to end the use of administrative detention against Jewish settlers.
This harsh measure is a means for Israel to detain suspects without charge or trial, for periods of up to six months at a time, based on intelligence that the suspect intended to break the law. This detention can also be renewed indefinitely.
Shortly after Katz's move, Israel released settlers who had been held in administrative detention.
In light of the escalation in Israeli settler violence, senior Israeli military officials have privately called for the tool to be reactivated, lamenting weak law enforcement measures by police against violent settlers.
The "administrative detention" system is still applied against Palestinians. Data from the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem indicate that there are more than 3,000 Palestinians in detention in the West Bank.
With settler violence reaching record levels amid international condemnation, international support for the establishment of a Palestinian state has expanded.
The government's vision has become more consolidated.
