Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has authorised residents of 18 additional illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank to obtain personal gun permits, according to a statement from his office.
The statement said on Wednesday that the decision applies to settlements in the occupied West Bank and forms part of an expansion of Ben-Gvir's firearms reform policy.
Under the decision, residents of the newly added settlements are now eligible to apply for personal gun licenses, a move the minister's office described as "part of national efforts to strengthen self-defence, boost personal security and reinforce settlement emergency response teams."
Ben-Gvir said more than 240,000 Israelis have received gun permits since the expansion of the policy, compared with about 8,000 permits issued annually in previous years, calling the figure unprecedented.
He claimed that many armed civilians have foiled Palestinian attacks before Israeli security forces arrived, saying that "weapons save lives."
The newly approved list includes illegal settlements across the northern, central and southern occupied West Bank, as well as the settlement of Goder in the Jordan Valley.
"I am pleased today to approve the addition of 18 more settlements in Judea and Samaria to the list of communities eligible for personal firearms," Ben-Gvir said. "They deserve the basic and moral right to protect themselves and their families."
Armed violence against Palestinians
Ben-Gvir launched his policy of expanding civilian access to firearms, including among illegal settlers in the West Bank, in late 2023 following the start of Israel's genocide in Gaza.
The move has sparked controversy inside Israel, particularly after a series of accidental shootings that resulted in Israeli fatalities.
Illegal Israeli settlers carry out frequent armed attacks against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank to forcibly displace communities and seize land amid a sharp rise in violence since October 2023.
Palestinian official figures say the Israeli aggression has killed more than 1,100 Palestinians, wounded around 11,000 others, and led to the arrest of more than 21,000 people across the occupied West Bank.
