The Perennial Cycle of Outrage and Expansion
The receipts speak for themselves: FIRST INSTANCE: The Foundation of 'Facts on the Ground' The concept of creating irreversible 'facts on the ground' through settlement expansion has been a cornerstone tactic since at least 1967 , immediately following the Six-Day War. Initial civilian settlements, often disguised as military outposts, began almost immediately. The UN Security Council Resolution
242 (1967) , which called for the 'withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict,' was effectively sidestepped from the outset through this strategy. The 'outrage' then, as now, was largely rhetorical, despite widespread condemnation. REPETITIONS: A Predictable Pattern of Condemnation and Growth 1980s: During Menachem Begin’s Likud government, settlement
growth accelerated significantly. In 1980 , the UN Security Council passed Resolution 465 , explicitly calling on Israel to 'dismantle the existing settlements and in particular to cease, on an urgent basis, the establishment, construction, and planning of settlements in the Arab territories occupied since 1967.' Global condemnations followed, yet the settler population nearly doubled by the end
of the decade (B'Tselem, 2023). 1990s: Despite the Oslo Accords ( 1993, 1995 ), which ostensibly offered a path to peace and a two-state solution, settlement construction continued, albeit sometimes in a less overt fashion, with 'natural growth' becoming a popular euphemism. The international community, including significant EU member states, consistently issued statements of condemnation. Yet,