Legislation9/3/2026

What Changed After the Repeal of the Disengagement Law in Samaria

Amendment No. 7 of 2023 allowed Israelis to enter and remain in part of northern Samaria from which settlements were evacuated in 2005. However, it did not automatically restore land rights, building permits, or previous development plans.

Key facts

•Amendment No. 7 was passed on March 21, 2023
•Disengagement Plan Implementation Law
•Region: northern Samaria
•3,436 terrorist attacks in 2023
•2,613 terrorist attacks in 2022
•Increase of approximately 31.5%

What Exactly the Knesset Repealed

On March 21, 2023, the Knesset passed Amendment No. 7 to the Disengagement Plan Implementation Law. In northern Samaria, the provisions prohibiting entry and presence, providing for the removal of people from the area, and imposing related penalties ceased to apply; the future loss of settlers’ real property rights was also repealed. The previous restrictions remain in effect in the Gaza Strip.

Why Permission to Enter Does Not Confer the Right to Build

The amendment did not reinstate the previous planning orders or grant evacuees an automatic right to return to their former homes. Reestablishing the settlements requires changes to the designation and boundaries of the area, the allocation of state land, and new planning procedures. Therefore, the mere fact that presence in the area is lawful does not mean that construction is legal or that there is ownership of the plot.

Homesh and the Status of the Land

Part of the former Homesh site was located on privately owned land belonging to residents of the Palestinian village of Burqa, which was seized by a 1978 military order. That order was revoked in 2013, so construction on such plots is prohibited. According to the source article, the new placement of homes on land recognized as state land legally constitutes the establishment of a different settlement, rather than the full restoration of the former Homesh.

Reestablished Settlements and Security

Following the amendment, Homesh, Sa-Nur, Ganim, and Kadim were reestablished, though not necessarily on their former sites and only after additional administrative procedures. Protecting the settlements and the roads leading to them required the IDF to deploy additional forces; the road to the yeshiva in Homesh passes through Burqa, and the military had to escort the students. According to the Shin Bet, 3,436 terrorist attacks were recorded in Judea and Samaria in 2023, compared with 2,613 in 2022, although these figures alone do not prove a causal connection with the amendment.

What this means for you

For an ordinary person, repeal of the prohibition means being able to enter and remain in the relevant areas of northern Samaria without the previous restriction under the Disengagement Law. But it does not replace verification of land rights, planning status, and permits: residence and construction require separate legal grounds. A reestablished settlement also does not necessarily have the same boundaries and legal status that it had before the 2005 evacuation.

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