The Interior Ministry on Thursday granted official status to four new communities in Judea and Samaria—a dramatic milestone capping years-long processes and adding to the 39 communities formalized recently under Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s expansion drive.
The new city of Shira (East Rosh HaAyin) in the Samaria Regional Council, which was approved by the security cabinet in December 2025 as a new community, is now officially on the map with its designation. The city is planned east of Rosh HaAyin adjacent to Highway 5, spanning roughly 9,500 dunams and slated to include tens of thousands of housing units.
Also in Samaria, the town of Har Bazak was formalized after receiving cabinet approval in December 2025. The town sits on a high, strategic point and is part of a chain of new communities providing a strategic response along the Har Bazak-Goder-Tamun corridor.
Gush Etzion saw a double celebration: The town of Pnei Kedem, established 26 years ago and counted among the youth communities, reached the end of its formalization process. The move will allow the town to grow significantly and develop as an independent community.
Additionally, the new town of Keren Yaar (Al Keren Forest) in Gush Etzion, also approved by the cabinet in December 2025, was finalized. Keren Yaar is located at a strategic point above Highway 60 and serves as a significant link in maintaining continuity between Gush Etzion and Kiryat Arba.
Granting formal status is a critical milestone in establishing the communities—a process led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich—that will enable infrastructure development, extensive construction, and significant strengthening of the hold on the land.