as to maintain a Jewish connection to the historic regions of Judea and Samaria that make up the West Bank . However , some subset are not ideological hard-liners , and inducements may convince a number of them to move into Israel proper in preparation for a withdrawal .
Palestinian leaders and the broader Arab world view these far-flung settlements as a form of creeping annexation of land ultimately intended for a future Palestinian state . They have indicated an unwillingness to allow any Jews to remain in the West Bank after any future deal .
An Obstacle To Peace ?
Despite all of the problematic elements of the settlements , construction continued even as negotiations proceeded between Israel and the Palestinians from the start of the Oslo peace process in 1993 through 2009 . That was when President Barack Obama , at the beginning of his first term , asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to freeze all settlement activity during negotiations with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas . Understanding that he could not appear to be any softer on settlements than President Obama , President Abbas has since insisted on a settlement freeze as a precondition for peace talks with Israel .
Israel , in fact , had neither established new settlements nor expanded old ones for many years , except to accommodate “ natural growth ,” the increase in the number of residents who require housing . Critics of Israel ’ s settlement policy point to the fact that such “ natural growth ” often leads not just to the construction of new homes within the existing settlement , but to an expansion of the settlement ’ s footprint . They view this growth as the continued appropriation of Palestinian land .
The largest city in the West Bank is Hebron .