Historical context

Ganim was an Israeli settlement located in the northern West Bank, just east of the Palestinian city of Jenin. It was administratively managed under the Shomron Regional Council.

Ganim's history prior to its physical re-establishment in August 2026

1. Foundation, Origins, and Geography (1983–2005) Ganim was founded in 1983 by members of the Betar movement. Its name was derived from the assumed biblical name of nearby Jenin, Ein Ganim (Anem), associated with the Tribe of Issachar.

2. Following the Oslo Accords, Ganim and the neighboring settlement of Kadim remained enclaves located east of Jenin, which observers note are part of a network of infrastructure designed to surround the city.

3. Evacuation During the Disengagement (2005). In the summer of 2005, Ganim's residents were evacuated and its synagogue was dismantled by the Israeli army as part of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan. Ganim was one of four settlements in the northern West Bank evacuated under this plan, alongside Kadim, Homesh, and Sa-Nur.

4. Post-Evacuation Status: Following the evacuation, the Knesset passed the Disengagement Law, which formally barred Israeli citizens from entering these evacuated areas, leaving the region between Nablus and Jenin without an Israeli civilian presence for nearly two decades

5. Transition Period and Path to Re-establishment (2023–2025) Repeal of the Disengagement Law (2023): On March 21, 2023, the Knesset passed a law repealing the entry prohibition for the four evacuated northern West Bank settlements. Initially, a military order in May 2023 permitted entry only to Homesh.

6. In May 2024, under the direction of then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the military command extended the cancellation of the disengagement restrictions to cover the entire northern West Bank area, including Ganim.

7. On December 11, 2025, the Israeli security cabinet officially approved the re-establishment of Ganim as part of a decision to establish 19 new settlements. This decision paved the way for preparatory work on the site and the eventual return of Israeli families in August 2026.

Timeline of Ganim's re-establishment from 2025 up to August 2026

On December 11, 2025, the Israeli security cabinet officially approved the re-establishment of Ganim (alongside the neighboring Kadim settlement) as part of a formal decision to establish or reorganize 19 settlements in the occupied West Bank.

In late February 2026, the Israeli military began reoccupying and preparing an abandoned military base in the Jenin area to support the impending civilian return.

On March 17, 2026, the very first caravans and mobile homes were delivered and set up on the grounds of the evacuated settlement to begin preparing the physical outpost.

April – May 2026: Operational Launch, Land Seizures, and Boundaries Official Procedures Begin: In late April 2026, Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, declared the official commencement of physical procedures to reconstruct and repopulate the Ganim settlement.

On May 17, 2026, the Israeli military command issued an order to seize 22 dunums of Palestinian land near the Haddad tourist area (located in Qabatiya, south of Jenin) specifically for the benefit and reconstruction of the Kadim and Ganim settlements.

To legally consolidate the territory, IDF Central Command Commander Gen. Avi Bluth signed military orders defining Ganim's new jurisdictional boundaries, creating a closed military zone of 2,790.56 dunams

On July 23, 2026, a Palestinian Authority policeman allegely stabbed a man in the Ganim area before being shot and killed by Israeli forces.

In early August 2026, the Israeli military demolished 27 Palestinian structures within the Jenin governorate. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich explicitly stated that these demolitions were carried out to pave the physical way for the return of settlements to Ganim and Kadim. Along the road leading to Ganim, the Israeli army leveled adjacent Palestinian property and used piles of rubble to block local access roads, disconnecting nearby Palestinian communities.

By August 6, 2026, around two dozen prefabricated homes had been installed on Ganim's hillside as bulldozers leveled more of the surrounding terrain to make room for further construction.

On Thursday, August 13, 2026, Israeli settler families officially repopulated Ganim, 21 years after the evacuation during the 2005 unilateral disengagement plan.

Inauguration Ceremony: To secure the arrival of settlers and officials, the military closed off side roads and main entrances from Haddad Roundabout to the Al-Jalama military checkpoint. The physical return was celebrated on-site by Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi.

Annexationist Declarations:

At the ceremony, Bezalel Smotrich declared that "Samaria is ours... an inseparable part of the Land of Israel and the State of Israel," emphasizing that repopulating Ganim carried significant strategic security value.

Defense Minister Israel Katz, who also attended the ceremony, said: “This is our home, this is the Land of Israel, this is where we will remain forever.”

Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan called the move “a moment of historic rectification” and said the government’s plans would significantly increase the Jewish population in northern Samaria.