In September 2005, Israeli forces pulled out of the Gaza Strip, with the last troops leaving through the al-Karara (Kisufim) and Beit Hanoon (Erez) crossings.
The withdrawal was seen at the time as a historic turning point, raising hopes that nearly four decades of military occupation had come to an end.
But instead of relinquishing control, Israel repositioned itself on Gaza’s edges. It sealed off the territory by land, sea, and air, restricting movement through fence crossings, imposing limits on fishing waters, and keeping watch from above.
In this visual explainer, Al Jazeera breaks down factors that led to then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s disengagement plan, maps the 21 illegal settlements Israel dismantled across Gaza, and explores how their removal paved the way for deeper settlement expansion across the occupied West Bank.
What led up to disengagement?
The idea of the Gaza disengagement was primarily conceived and championed by Sharon.
A strong supporter of Israeli settlements, Sharon began considering a withdrawal from Gaza in the early 2000s, particularly after the outbreak of the second Intifada (2000-05).
The idea was motivated by the high cost of defending isolated settlements, the demographic challenges of ruling over a large Palestinian population, and the strategic goal of consolidating Israel’s hold on larger illegal settlements in the West Bank.
Despite facing intense opposition from within his Likud party and across the political spectrum, Sharon pushed forward the plan, framing it as a strategic move rather than a concession.
The proposal, formally known in Hebrew as the “Hitnatkut” (Disengagement), was announced in December 2003 and eventually approved by the Knesset in October 2004, paving the way for the dismantling of 21 settlements in Gaza and four in the northern West Bank in 2005.
Timeline of Gaza disengagement
- June 6, 2004 – The Israeli cabinet votes 14-7 in favour of PM Sharon’s disengagement plan, setting the stage for withdrawal from Gaza.
- February 16, 2005 – The Knesset passes the Disengagement Implementation Law, providing the legal framework for evacuations and compensation.
- August 15, 2005 – Israeli forces begin dismantling settlements and removing settlers from Gaza.
- August 22, 2005 – All 21 settlements in Gaza are emptied, removing about 8,000 settlers.
- August 23-24, 2005 – Attention shifts to the northern West Bank, where four settlements (al-Ghanim, Homesh, Kadim, Sanur) are dismantled.
- September 12, 2005 – Military jeeps and armoured bulldozers leave through the al-Karara and Beit Hanoon crossing points, ending 38 years of continuous Israeli military presence in the Strip.
Where were the 21 illegal settlements in Gaza?
Following the Six-Day War in 1967, when Israel occupied Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the Golan Heights, and the Sinai Peninsula, it intensified settlement building.
Israeli settlements are Jewish-only communities built on Palestinian land. Settlements are illegal under international law because they involve transferring an occupying power’s civilian population into occupied territory, which violates the Fourth Geneva Convention.
The first settlement in Gaza after 1967 was Kfar Darom, set up as a combined military-agricultural outpost in 1970 and later converted into a civilian community. It became part of Gush Katif, the largest Israeli settlement in the Gaza Strip, located in southern Gaza, where most settlements were concentrated, particularly in the Khan Younis and Rafah governorates.
Other settlements included Netzarim, just south of Gaza City, and several sites in northern Gaza. These settlements were heavily protected by the Israeli military and surrounded by buffer zones that restricted Palestinian movement.
Over the next three decades, a total of 21 settlements were built, housing some 8,000 settlers.
Although settlers made up just 0.6 percent of Gaza’s population, they controlled roughly 20 percent of its land, affecting about 1.3 million Palestinians living in the territory at the time.
During Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza, it built several corridors named after the settlements they connected, including Netzarim and Morag, two of the territory’s largest and most prominent settlements.
Settlement expansion across the West Bank
Since Israel’s 2005 disengagement from Gaza, settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem has accelerated. Today, there are between 600,000 and 750,000 Israeli settlers living in at least 250 settlements and outposts.
Many of these settlements have expanded while new outposts were set up, often strategically located to control roads, high ground, and key resources, effectively blocking Palestinians from accessing their land and limiting their freedom of movement.
One of Israel’s latest settlement announcements came in August 2025, when Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich approved the construction of about 3,400 housing units in E1, between East Jerusalem and the illegal settlement of Maale Adumim.
E1 is strategically significant, as it forms one of the last geographic links between Bethlehem and Ramallah, and expansion there could undermine plans for a territorially contiguous Palestinian state.
The post Mapping the 21 illegal settlements Israel had in Gaza 20 years ago appeared first on Al Jazeera.
