Israeli firing zones in the West Bank are extensive areas of Area C in the occupied West Bank declared off-limits to civilian presence for the ostensible purpose of military training. They are considered to be part of the wider issue of Israeli land expropriation in the West Bank, alongside the declarations of State Land in the West Bank.
Since 1967, Israel has designated roughly 18âÂÂ20% of the West Bank (nearly 30% of Area C) as firing zones. In these zones, any civilian presence or construction without special permission is forbidden by military order. Despite the restrictions, dozens of longstanding Palestinian communitiesâÂÂover 5,000 people in 38 villages as of recent countsâÂÂlive inside these areas.
Israeli firing zones in the West Bank continue to be a contentious issue, with implications for military policy, settlement expansion, and human rights. While Israel argues these areas are necessary for security, international bodies widely view them as mechanisms of land control that contribute to displacement and restrict Palestinian development. According to Amnesty International the "Israeli army routinely demolishes Palestinian homes and structures in these "firing zones"; by contrast, the Israel authorities have changed the status of some "of these "firing zones" to allow for the expansion of Israeli settlements located partially or completely in them." The eviction of Palestinians in these areas has been criticized by the United Nations, human rights organizations like B'Tselem, Bimkom and Human Rights Watch, and the European Union.
In 1945, the British government in Mandatory Palestine enacted the Defence Emergency Regulations, and Regulation 125âÂÂArea Closures of these regulations enabled military officers to declare certain areas to be 'closed military zones'. After its establishment May 1948, Israel adopted these regulations to impose an official state of emergency on the Palestinians inside of its newly established borders.
After the 1967 Six-Day War and Israel's occupation of the West Bank, the Israeli military began designating large tracts of land as closed military areas. Between August 1967 and 1975, about 150,000 hectares (over 25% of the West Bank) were classified as military zones. According to the Encyclopedia of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, "these zones need not be of military significance; at times, Israeli officials abort peaceful demonstrations or restrict journalistic access to an area by temporarily designating a siteâÂÂa building, a city, a region, a refugee camp, the entire Gaza Strip, even occasionally the whole West BankâÂÂa closed military area."
By the end of 1967, nearly 68,500 hectares were restricted. Areas such as the Jordan Valley and the Latrun region were among the first to be closed.
In a 1979 meeting, then-Agriculture Minister Ariel Sharon revealed that many firing zones were designated with the explicit intent of reserving land for future Israeli settlements. Sharon stated that: <blockquote>As the person who initiated the military fire zones in 1967, they were all intended for one purpose: to provide an opportunity for Jewish settlement in the area. As soon as the Six-Day War ended, I was still sitting with my division in Sinai. I was in Sinai when I drew up these zones. The firing zones were created for one purpose: land reserves for settlements.</blockquote>
In 2012, 900 dunams from a firing zone were given to Sha'arei Tikva, an Israeli settlement founded in 1983.
In 2014 it was reported that 35,000 dunums of "firing zone" land was being surveyed for the building of Israeli settlements.
In 2015, Israel officially removed the firing zone designation from part of Firing Zone 912 to allow the expansion of Ma'ale Adumim settlement.
Below is a breakdown of notable Israeli firing zones in the West Bank:
The Applied Research InstituteâÂÂJerusalem database of firing zones is shown below: