The air was buzzing with excitement on Sunday, June 14th, as members of the Karnei Shomron community eagerly awaited the arrival of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Political luminaries, including Energy Minister Eli Cohen, Construction and Housing Minister Haim Katz, and Governor of the Mateh Binyamin council, Israel Gantz, mingled with community friends and town workers at the Yeshivat Bnei Akiva in Karnei Shomron, enjoying camaraderie and plenty of food and drink.
However, as the IDF bombed Dahiyeh, sending Trump’s “dealmaking” into turmoil, and inspiring Iran to threaten Israel with midnight missiles, it was the perfect subterfuge for an announcement far greater than ceasefire extensions. Although the Prime Minister was a no-show, the excitement didn’t dissipate. Instead, the conversation turned to a Roof Plan, designed to bring the 11,000-member community to 40,000. The deal was developed through close collaboration between the Karnei Shomron Local Council, the Israeli government, and the Israel Land Authority.
The plan allows the construction of approximately 6,000 new housing units, along with substantial investments in infrastructure, public institutions, education, culture, transportation, commercial centers, employment zones, and public space development. This long-term, high-budget partnership is expected to accelerate housing supply and foster urban growth throughout the northern West Bank region of Israel.
The interconnected residential neighborhoods are presented as a fully integrated urban development, featuring premium high-density housing, a complete educational campus with dozens of kindergartens and schools, a cultural center, a country club, and a major commercial hub intended to serve residents across the broader region.
Upgrades to the existing parts of Karnei Shomron will focus on resurfacing and repaving roads, relocating high-voltage power lines underground, and enhancing overall safety and visual appeal. The environmental plan also calls for a new community park, backed by an investment exceeding NIS 10 million (about $3.2 million), that will include professional sports fields and various leisure facilities. This is supported by expanded transportation infrastructure, including newly paved access roads and dedicated bike paths.
‘This is the first of many such plans,’ Smotrich said
According to Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich, “This is the first of many such plans to be introduced in Judea and Samaria. Ariel and Moetza Eizorit Shomron are expected to follow,” he continued. “This creates ‘normalization, ‘ making Judea and Samaria every bit a part of Israel as is Caesaria, Dimona, Ofakim, and other places within Israel.”
He said he looks forward to his own town, Kedumim, getting a roof plan as well.
The historic and unprecedented initiative for the community is expected to significantly expand Karnei Shomron’s boundaries and establish it as a major regional center in the heart of the West Bank, connecting neighborhoods like Alonai Shiloh and Emmanuel. It is called a Roof Plan because it incorporates housing, infrastructure, public facilities, and funding. But most importantly, it serves as a practical measure to counteract the illegal construction that has been occurring in Area C by Arab residents, even along the seamline to Kfar Saba and Rosh HaAyin.
“We are signing one of the most significant moves in the history of Karnei Shomron,” Karnei Shomron Local Council Head Yonatan Kuznitz explains. “The roof agreement is not just a large-scale construction plan, but a strategic move that will determine the face of the region for decades to come. We are laying the foundations for turning Karnei Shomron into a leading regional metropolis that will connect Samaria to the center of the country and serve as a magnet for young families, employment, commerce, and quality education.”
Kuznitz noted that the Roof Agreement will also include new connections to major highways and transportation arteries, greatly improving residents’ access to other parts of the country.
Katz pointed out that granting the Roof Plan reaches beyond the growing metropolis of Karnei Shomron.
“From 2013 through last July, only fifty roof plans were signed throughout Israel. However, from last July, twenty-five additional roof plans were introduced. And this is the first time it is being introduced in Judea and Samaria, the Biblical heartland.” Katz said.
He noted that the substantial investments in infrastructure, public facilities, and urban development represent a major advancement for Karnei Shomron. He added that the plan will enable the community to triple its population while maintaining orderly and balanced growth.
Katz described the initiative as an unprecedented step in the region, emphasizing that the strength of a settlement should be measured not only by the number of housing units, but primarily by the quality of life it provides.
“We will keep working to advance and sign additional Roof Agreements in the West Bank over the coming year, as part of strengthening Jewish settlement and expanding the overall housing supply,” he declared.
A brief video by Netanyahu gave Kuznitz and Karnei Shomron a “Mazel Tov,” and then Smotrich addressed the crowd.
“The Roof Plan we sign today is for the future of Judea and Samaria,” Smotrich said. “It is a significant chapter in the Zionist story of the entire state of Israel, especially these days when there are those who are trying to weaken us in politics, threaten us with sanctions, orders, and boycotts. We give one clear answer – more construction, more settlement, and more Zionism.”
“In recent years, we have led an unprecedented settlement revolution. We have established and regulated over a hundred yishuvim. We have prevented and are preventing the establishment of a terrorist state in the heart of the Land of Israel.”
Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank
Smotrich then delivered the one-two punch, addressing the Prime Minister directly. “Mr. Prime Minister, the time has come to declare sovereignty over Judea and Samaria – now – before the elections.”
He went on to point out that building planned communities in the West Bank is certain to prevent another “October 7” attack in Ranaana, Kfar Saba, Afula, and throughout Israel, and that the national and existential security of the State of Israel relies on initiatives like this.
Kuznitz finally addressed the crowd, calling the decision, “An event that will forever be etched in the history of Karnei Shomron and that will bring de facto sovereignty to the area and create a territorial continuity of strong Jewish settlement.”
He also highlighted that Karnei Shomron had some of the highest IDF recruitment rates in the country, which unfortunately came along with a heavy and painful price in blood. Twelve new graves, he pointed out, are in the cemetery since the October 7th war began.
“Their dedication and that of all IDF soldiers and security forces who guard our borders are what allow us today to go into new places and strengthen our hold on the Holy Land of Israel, the land of our ancestors.”
“This is how Zionism is expressed,” he added.
Source:
www.jpost.com
