Statistics

At the end of 2007, the West Bank (not including East Jerusalem) contained 120 settlements that the Interior Ministry recognized as “communities,” even though some of them contain stretches of land on which the built-up area is not contiguous. 12 other settlements are located on land annexed by Israel in 1967 and made part of Jerusalem. There are an additional 100 or so unrecognized settlements, referred to in the media as “outposts,” which are usually smaller than the recognized settlements.

By the end of 2007, the number of settlers in the West Bank stood at 462,000. According to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, in September 2007, 271,400 settlers were living in the West Bank, excluding Jerusalem. In addition, based on growth statistics for the entire population of Jerusalem throughout 2007, the settler population in East Jerusalem is estimated at 191,000.

In 2007, the population of the settlements (not including East Jerusalem) grew faster than Israel’s general population: 4.5 percent compared to 1.5 percent. Some 40 percent of the settlements’ growth was comprised of Jews from Israel and abroad. However, population growth fell in comparison with 2006, when the settlements’ population grew by 5.8 percent.