OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), The Jerusalem Governorate has warned that Israeli authorities have approved a planning scheme allowing shooting ranges to be established at nine settlement sites in the Jerusalem area, as part of a broader plan covering 31 locations across the occupied West Bank.
The governorate said the move is part of an effort to expand armed settlement infrastructure and strengthen a system of settler terrorism against Palestinians.
According to the governorate, Planning Scheme No. 200/5 covers nine settlement locations in the Jerusalem Governorate: Adam, Givat HaHadasha, Kochav Yaakov, Tel Zion, New Migron, Kfar Adumim, Alon, Nofei Prat, and Anatot.
The approval would allow the expansion of firearms training facilities within Israeli settlements surrounding Occupied Jerusalem.
Expansion of armed settler infrastructure
The Jerusalem Governorate linked the approval to Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s policy of expanding civilian access to firearms.
It noted that Ben-Gvir announced in March 2024 that Israeli authorities had approved 100,000 firearms licenses since October 7, 2023, alongside measures easing licensing requirements.
According to the Palestinian Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, the broader plan covers 29 settlements, settlement communities, and settlement neighborhoods, as well as two industrial zones, across the governorates of Ramallah and Al-Bireh, Jerusalem, Nablus, and Jericho and the Jordan Valley.
The scheme adds shooting ranges to the list of permitted land uses in areas designated for public buildings and institutions, tourism, commerce, industry, crafts, sports, and recreation.
This change expands the planning options for establishing firearms training facilities and training licensed gun owners in areas designated for multiple purposes.
Previous measures to expand firearms training
The commission said the new scheme builds on earlier Israeli measures to expand firearms ownership and training infrastructure within settlements.
It noted that a 2022 Israeli government list identified nine licensed shooting ranges operating in settlements across the occupied West Bank.
The commission also cited a document published in 2024 by the economic development company affiliated with the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council concerning the operation of a shooting range in the Psagot settlement.
According to the document, the need for the facility was linked to a rise in firearms license applications following October 7, 2023.
The company also committed to covering the costs of constructing the shooting range and its access roads.
The commission said these developments demonstrate a shift from facilitating firearms licensing to providing the infrastructure needed for weapons training, with the involvement of institutions affiliated with Israeli settlement councils.
Approval comes amid surge in settler attacks
The approval comes amid a sharp increase in attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
According to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission, Israeli settlers carried out 1,369 attacks in October, compared with 647 in September, representing an increase of 111.6%.
The documented attacks included shootings, physical assaults, arson, property destruction, damage to agricultural land, theft of crops and livestock, and preventing Palestinian farmers from accessing their land.
The Jerusalem Governorate warned that expanding shooting-range infrastructure within Israeli settlements could further strengthen armed settler groups and increase threats to Palestinian communities across the occupied West Bank.
