El Matan () is an illegal Israeli outpost in the

West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

on the lands of the Palestinian village of Wad Qana, located around a kilometer south of Ma'ale Shomron, under the jurisdiction of the Shomron Regional Council. The outpost was established in 2000 on the Wadi Qana

Nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

– one of the largest and most important such reserves in the

– by a group of religious youths from the nearby settlements of ( Karnei Shomron and Ma'ale Shomron). It is home to an estimated population of 48 (2008), around 16 families and a small number of singles, both religious and non-religious

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. El Matan is considered an unauthorized outpost by the Israeli government and is illegal under Israeli and international law. The international community does not differentiate between Israeli outposts and Israeli settlements authorized by the Israeli government. The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, though the Israeli government disputes this. A synagogue erected on the site was closed down for lacking a building permit from the authorities in the Israeli Civil Administration. On 2 October 2014 Haaretz carried notification of a master plan envisaging the confiscation from Wad Qana, an area farmed by Palestinians, of 100

dunam A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; ; ; ), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area analogous in role (but not equal) to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amo ...

s of land for the El Matan outpost.

References

{{Shomron Regional Council Unauthorized Israeli settlements Populated places established in 2000 2000 establishments in Palestine Israeli outposts