From a sprawling industrial complex atop a hill, a family of Israeli settlers operates a manufacturing process for prefabricated housing units in an effort to accelerate the expansion of illegal Jewish outposts in the West Bank, driving Palestinians from their homes. Libi Construction and Infrastructure Group, owned by brothers Eliav and Harel “Koko” Libi, is building a new factory to produce the simple white structures that they and others install in outposts, Eliav Libi said in a social media post in April. At least five warehouses surrounded by rows of prefabricated homes and piles of building materials were visible at the company’s complex on the outskirts of the Shiloh settlement, as seen from an adjacent road recently, while excavators worked to expand the site. Their activities reflect a growing settlement approach aimed at quickly and cheaply asserting control over large areas of West Bank land. Instead of constructing modern complexes and neighborhoods under permits from the Israeli government, these outposts often begin with one or two prefabricated homes without any official approval. These outposts are inhabited by young Israeli shepherds who bring their livestock to graze on land used by Palestinian shepherds and farmers. The United Nations, many European countries, and others widely condemn all Israeli settlements. Outposts like those established by the Libi brothers are illegal even under Israeli law, which requires prior approval for construction in areas under Israeli administrative control in the West Bank. Nevertheless, the brothers enjoy broad support from the Israeli government in their relentless pursuit of expanding these outposts, as part of a wider wave of settlement expansion in the West Bank since the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) attacks on Israel in 2023 and the ensuing war in Gaza. A Reuters examination of the brothers’ extensive activities showed that during that period, they contributed to the establishment of at least nine new agricultural outposts. Overall, Israeli settlers established 184 unauthorized outposts in the West Bank during the three years ending in 2025, a number nearly equal to the total established during the previous three decades, according to the Israeli anti-settlement human rights organization Peace Now. The Israeli government does not regularly publish data on outposts, but government officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, announce figures only slightly lower than the organization’s numbers. Peace Now and the Palestinian government in the West Bank say the total number of outposts currently stands at about 410. The organization, which monitors settlement activity through a field verification team, also indicates that settlers established 86 outposts last year alone. Reuters verified the existence of 30 of these outposts through field visits and satellite imagery. Peace Now and the Israeli human rights organization Kerem Navot state in a joint report that these outposts, collectively, extend over approximately one-fifth of the West Bank’s area, with most of this land seized during the four years since the current Netanyahu-led government took power. Settlers report a similar estimate of about 1,000 square kilometers. The Libi brothers are prominent figures in the hardline settler movement that uses livestock, crops, fences, and sometimes violence, to expand the Israeli presence in the West Bank. Eliav Libi, in particular, has played a role in pushing political and military leaders to adopt outposts as a strategy to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, which they say would pose a security risk to Israel. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) states that fatal attacks by settlers against Palestinians are increasing in conjunction with the spread of outposts. OCHA data shows that at least 16 Palestinians were killed in attacks by Israeli settlers last year, while over 1,100 others were injured, a record number. Attacks have escalated further this year, with 23 Palestinians killed and over 1,000 injured as of August. In comparison, data shows that Palestinians killed one settler and injured 22 settlers this year. A UN investigation in June concluded that Israeli forces typically provide protection for these violent acts, for example, by accompanying settlers during their attacks on Palestinian villages. Reuters concluded that the Israeli government granted the Libi brothers a license for the new factory, grazing permits, and an agricultural grant, as part of what Peace Now said was Ministry of Agriculture funding for outposts totaling approximately $1 million. It was also found that the government approved an additional $1.3 million for an organization closely linked to the Libi brothers, which had not been previously disclosed. The Israeli Ministry of Defense also employed the Libi brothers for work that included demolishing Palestinian homes in war-torn Gaza, according to government data and a brief interview with Harel Libi. Government ministers, including Defense Minister Israel Katz, met with Eliav Libi and his associates to discuss their work and plans. The government had already recognized at least three outposts established by the Libi brothers, including one established last year, which means they could be developed into larger settlements. Over the past two years, senior Israeli military commanders have openly supported and coordinated with a group of hardline settlers, of which Eliav Libi is a prominent member, while it established dozens of agricultural outposts, according to a senior member of a settler group that coordinates with the army, videos of military commanders’ statements at settler conferences, and statements made by Libi to pro-settlement media. The Libi brothers declined to comment on this report, except for Harel Libi confirming their contracts with the Ministry of Defense. He said, “We work for them in various locations and military bases.” Libi Construction and Infrastructure Company responded to detailed questions from Reuters with a statement saying that the information on which this report was based was merely “false allegations” aimed at “promoting an extremist political agenda that serves parties seeking to fuel the cycle of violence and conflict.” The company added that it operates “according to the law and without discrimination based on religion, race, or gender.” Eliav Libi said in a podcast in August that the company avoids employing Palestinians, describing them as “the enemy.” The army denied having formal relations with the brothers in their personal capacity. The Ministry of Defense declined to comment. A military official said the army coordinates with unregulated agricultural outposts in the West Bank to ensure their security “and the security of the surrounding areas.” The army said its soldiers are also obligated to prevent any assaults on Palestinians or their property. Tzvi Sukkot, a Knesset member from the Religious Zionism party, which is part of the Netanyahu-led government coalition, praised young settlers in the West Bank, describing Eliav Libi as “one of Israel’s greatest builders.” Sukkot, who in August smashed a Palestinian memorial in the West Bank with a sledgehammer, said, “If there are incidents of violence, they must be dealt with. That is the role of the police. That is the role of the army.” Neither Netanyahu’s office nor Defense Minister Katz’s office responded to questions regarding this report. During a visit to the West Bank in August, Netanyahu said that agricultural outposts “pave the way for a very large migration” of Israelis to the West Bank, without elaborating. He noted the establishment of 160 new agricultural outposts, saying that “more are on the way.” Senior Palestinian official Wasel Abu Yousef said that settlement expansion aims to “obstruct the establishment of an independent and geographically contiguous Palestinian state.” Centuries-old village amidst outposts To understand the Libi brothers’ activities and their connections to the government, Reuters reviewed the brothers’ public statements and previously undisclosed government records showing financial support for them, interviewed two settlers who know them, and Israeli peace activists who monitor illegal outposts, and visited Palestinian villagers who described violence by settlers from outposts the brothers helped establish. Suleiman Dawabsheh, head of the Palestinian village council of Duma, a few miles from the Libi brothers’ factory in the Shiloh settlement, said Eliav Libi “spreads fear.” He added that he calls “for the displacement of citizens and the seizure of their lands.” Duma village, which overlooks the Jordan Valley and dates back centuries, is located amidst outposts established by the Libi brothers. Eliav Libi spoke extensively about using outposts to expel Palestinians from the West Bank, including during a podcast in August. According to a Reuters count based on displacement data collected by the Israeli anti-settlement human rights organization B’Tselem, at least 434 people, mostly semi-nomadic Bedouin shepherds, have left areas near outposts linked to the Libi brothers since 2022. Most of Israel’s Western allies view settlers like the Libi brothers as a destabilizing factor that hinders peace efforts in the Middle East. In May and June, Australia, Canada, France, Norway, and the United Kingdom imposed coordinated sanctions on them, accusing them of illegal land seizure and facilitating settler violence. Last year, the United Kingdom imposed sanctions on Harel Libi and froze the assets of an outpost he established known as “Koko’s Farm,” preventing British financial institutions from conducting any transactions related to the outpost’s funds or its settlers. Britain accused Libi of committing “acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians,” without specifying the nature of these alleged acts or why sanctions were imposed specifically on Koko’s Farm. The United States had imposed sanctions on extremist settlers during President Joe Biden’s term, but lifted them under his successor, current President Donald Trump, who showed strong support for the Netanyahu government and settlements. The Trump administration also softened the traditional American stance that settlements are contrary to international law. Under pressure from Washington following attacks by settlers on Palestinian-Americans, Netanyahu ordered the removal of some outposts, Israeli sources told Reuters on September 7. Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich later said he believed this move would be limited to a small number of sites located in areas of the West Bank under Palestinian administration. Settlers present themselves as pioneers establishing their presence on lands they claim are unutilized, despite the presence of Palestinian shepherds and farmers. As stated on the Libi company’s website, “We receive the mountain barren of construction and deliver it to the client as a complete, developed residential neighborhood connected to infrastructure and thriving... all that remains is to welcome the residents.” The Libi brothers maintain close ties with the Israeli government despite documented acts of intimidation and violence, including killings and arson, linked to outposts they helped establish. The brothers have not been directly accused of involvement in killings or arson. Earlier this year, Eliav Libi participated in an intimidation campaign targeting the Obaiyat family, a Bedouin shepherd family living near an illegal outpost he established called Mitzpeh Michal near the village of Fasayil in the Jordan Valley. Libi and his companions, sometimes carrying firearms, brought cows to graze in the family’s garden, dumped tons of rotten dates near their home for livestock feed, played loud music from cars and drones, and cut off their water and electricity supplies, according to interviews with a family member and two witnesses, along with videos provided by the Israeli anti-occupation group “Looking the Occupation in the Eye” and verified by Reuters. In March, a bulldozer demolished the Obaiyat family’s home. Videos showed Israeli soldiers observing the demolition. In response to a question from Reuters, the army said the buildings were illegally constructed and were demolished by Israeli authorities, while soldiers provided security for the operation. A total of six families were forcibly displaced from the area, according to B’Tselem. “De facto sovereignty” over the West Bank The brothers grew up in the West Bank, where their settler father resides. He declined to be interviewed. The brothers have been establishing outposts since at least 2009, when they set up an illegal farm on a hilltop near the Adei Ad outpost, where they were living at the time. In 2012, the Israeli army temporarily banned Harel Libi from entering the West Bank, then demolished the farm shortly thereafter, according to a military statement and media reports published at the time. Libi was among 12 “Jewish extremists” the army said were involved in “leading, directing, and carrying out violent and clandestine activities targeting Palestinian residents” and Israeli security forces in the West Bank. In 2015, a settler from Adei Ad killed a Palestinian couple and their infant child in an arson attack on their home in Duma. The settler was later convicted of murder and sentenced to three life terms. Since then, Israel has legalized Adei Ad. Today, the Libi brothers control what one settler who knows them described as an “empire” in the West Bank, with activities ranging from sand extraction and cement manufacturing to road construction and settlement building, in addition to expanding their own farms. The family plays a grassroots role in a strategy that Smotrich says aims to “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state. Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 war. Most of the world considers all Israeli settlements illegal under international laws governing military occupation. Israel disputes this view, citing historical, religious, and political ties to the West Bank. However, it has consistently distinguished between legal settlements, which receive prior approvals through lengthy procedures, and illegal outposts. The government has often blurred this distinction by providing protection to outposts, but its increasing and overt adoption of them is unprecedented. Peace Now says that nearly half of the 54 settlements approved by the Israeli government last year were originally existing outposts that had not received any prior approval. Netanyahu said during his visit to settlers in the West Bank in August, which celebrated outposts, “We are preserving the future existence of the people of Israel.” Netanyahu returned to power in 2022 after an 18-month period as opposition leader. Since then, his government has nearly doubled the number of recognized settlements in the West Bank to 231, according to Peace Now, including settlements that originally started as outposts. The Israeli right, including Netanyahu, has sought to annex the West Bank, but faced opposition in Washington after regional allies of Trump in the Middle East, such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, exerted strong pressure on the United States to oppose this move. With the absence of American support, officials including Smotrich said that rapid settlement expansion could mean de facto annexation. In June, Smotrich described this strategy as imposing “de facto sovereignty” over the West Bank, while gradually integrating the area into Israel through systematic settlement expansion. A Reuters review of the Libi brothers’ social media statements and public interviews showed that they are in regular contact with senior officials, including Smotrich and Netanyahu’s Settlement Minister Orit Strock. Eliav Libi hosted Strock in April during her visit to newly established outposts on the outskirts of the Jordan Valley, where Libi said his friends reside. Strock did not respond to a request for comment. In August, Defense Minister Israel Katz met with Eliav Libi at the ministry headquarters, where Libi presented a proposal to build settlements in areas of the West Bank under Palestinian administration, two Israeli officials told Reuters. In a video address to an illegal outpost in February, Katz said he was working, with Netanyahu’s support, to “regularize the status” of dozens of agricultural outposts. The military official who responded to Reuters’ questions said that regularizing the status means the government seeks to establish a new regulatory framework for illegal outposts, “under strict conditions and security coordination.” In a social media post in April, Libi praised Netanyahu’s government ministers, including Katz, for achieving a “historic accomplishment” in settlement building. Seizing land with livestock Eliav Libi believes the Bible grants Jews the right to live in the West Bank. In May, he told a settler conference that Israeli settler farmers are fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah, which states that a part of the Jordan Valley will become “a pasture for flocks, for my people who seek me.” Libi said, according to a video of the event posted online, “We are witnessing the first signs of this prophecy being fulfilled,” describing Jewish cattle and sheep herders in the area. According to public statements made by Eliav Libi himself and a count compiled by Israeli activist Dror Etkes, founder of the Israeli human rights organization Kerem Navot, which documents and opposes settlement expansion, the brothers have restricted Palestinian access to an area roughly equivalent to the size of Paris in the fertile Jordan Valley. Etkes said they use fences, roads, livestock, and agriculture, along with intimidation and violence, to assert control over about 10,000 hectares (25,000 acres). These outposts are primarily located between the villages of Duma, al-Mughayyir, and Fasayil. Government records show that the brothers obtained grazing permits and government funding. In 2025, their company received a small grant from the Ministry of Agriculture, in addition to a grazing permit from the Israel Land Authority for areas around Fasayil. Public records also show that between 2021 and 2025, the Libi brothers’ company and two affiliated settlements received a total of 168,586 shekels ($56,000) in funding from the Ministry of Agriculture, with an additional 107,357 shekels ($36,000) approved for this year. The ministry did not respond to a request for comment. In addition to government and military support, Libi Construction and Infrastructure Company has also raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations from online campaigns, according to publicly available crowdfunding sites. During the settler conference in May, Libi acknowledged that his activity operates at the margins of Israeli law, telling attendees, “Sometimes we push things from the bottom up” by going “a few steps further” than officially approved procedures allow. He added that settlements are not inherently linked to violence, but settlement in areas inhabited by Palestinians practically means “friction.” Friction occurred in 2024 in the Malachei HaShalom settlement, after 14-year-old settler Binyamin Achimeir was beaten and stabbed to death while herding sheep. This outpost was established by Eliav Libi in 2015, retroactively recognized by Israel in 2023, and fully legalized this year. Libi described this outpost in media interviews as his home, although he and his family members regularly move to new outposts. Israeli investigators charged Ahmed Dawabsheh, a 21-year-old resident of Duma, with Achimeir’s murder, saying he was influenced by Islamic State ideology. Reuters could not verify whether Dawabsheh pleaded guilty or innocent or the current status of the case. Achimeir’s killing sparked a wave of retaliatory attacks by settlers on several Palestinian villages, including Duma, resulting in the deaths of four Palestinians, including a child, according to the UN and Amnesty International at the time. Some were shot, and dozens of homes were burned. The army detained six settlers after the attacks, but they were released within a few months without charges. In a separate incident, Defense Minister Katz released all settlers detained by the army in 2025. Similar collective retaliatory attacks are a common response to acts of violence committed by Palestinians against Israelis in the West Bank, and settlers often scrawl “price tag” on Palestinian property, referring to the price they believe Palestinians should pay. After Duma... Organization The Duma attacks led to the establishment of the Farms Association, whose board includes Eliav Libi and other hardliners subject to international sanctions. The association’s website states, “Following the events of Duma, farmers, in cooperation with senior military figures, initiated the establishment of educational farms.” The association says it seeks to provide a structured framework for young settlers, engage them in agricultural work, enhance their trust in state institutions, and encourage them to perform military service. It adds that the government recognizes the “strategic importance” of agricultural outposts and supports them through infrastructure, fences, security measures, and agricultural grants. It notes that these farms are much less costly than traditional licensed settlements, “while ensuring control over vast areas of land.” A settler working with an organization that coordinates settlement activities with the army told Reuters that the military establishment previously considered these outposts a “major nuisance” that wasted time and resources. But this stance changed after the October 7, 2023, attacks. He added that the army began directing settlers to locations where farms should be established, as a tool to keep Palestinians away from areas where Israelis reside in the West Bank. He said, requesting anonymity, “It has become a solution.” The United Kingdom imposed sanctions on the Libi brothers and the Farms Association in June, accusing the association of providing financial and logistical support to settlers linked to violence and forced displacement of Palestinians. It also imposed sanctions on an association called Ahavat Gilad, which it said was transferring donations to outposts. The Farms Association website states that Ahavat Gilad operates and manages it. On August 2, the Israeli Ministry of National Security approved a joint project with Ahavat Gilad aimed, according to a procurement document published on the Israeli Government Procurement Administration website, at reducing violence committed by young Israeli settlers. According to the document, the ministry will provide up to eight million shekels ($2.6 million) for the project over three years, half of which will go to the association. The registered address for Ahavat Gilad in the Israeli associations registry is a property linked to the Libi brothers’ father, Yaakov Libi, in Shiloh. Yaakov Libi joined the association after the Duma events and served as its executive director from 2025 until early this year, during a period that saw a significant increase in donations and the hiring of a number of employees, according to Ministry of Justice documents obtained by Kerem Navot and reviewed by Reuters. He remains a member of the board. During a visit to Shiloh in August, a Reuters reporter spoke briefly with the association’s current executive director, Netanel Bukaya, by phone and then at the Libi brothers’ factory. Bukaya said about the government funding, “We are patriots, and we trust the army and the government.” The association said in a statement to Reuters that it “encourages educational and charitable activities, providing assistance to those in need and legal settlement.” The Ministry of National Security said in a statement that it chose to fund the association because of its “tangible and important results in guiding youth towards positive activities, preventing violence, encouraging army recruitment, and so on.” It added that the sanctions imposed on the association reflect an anti-Israel agenda. Neither the Libi brothers nor Netanyahu’s office responded to a request for comment regarding the funding. The British Foreign Office said that settler violence and the expansion of illegal settlements “seriously undermine the prospects for a two-state solution.” On July 16, senior security officials, including the commander of the Israeli army’s Central Command, Avi Bluth, who is responsible for West Bank operations, spoke at the Farms Association’s first security conference at an outpost near Jerusalem. Bluth said, according to videos distributed by the association, “I believe very much in the people here... I appreciate what you are doing.” In May, Bluth presented data to journalists showing that 160 farms had been established in coordination with the army. In his speech at a settler event in February, Defense Minister Katz described these outposts as a “fortress that strengthens our adherence to our historic homeland,” according to a video of his speech. Neither the Farms Association nor Bluth nor Katz responded to requests for comment. The army and the government also did not respond to questions regarding their relationship with the association. Gaza bulldozing and revenge for son’s death Last year, the Libi brothers’ company provided the Israeli army with excavators, bulldozers, and drivers to work in Gaza, according to Eliav Libi and a government statement. The army at the time was using civilian contractors to demolish thousands of homes in the Strip. Human rights organizations say the systematic destruction of civilian property violates laws of war, while the Israeli army says these actions were justified to remove explosives and facilitate ground operations. Eliav Libi said at the settler conference in May that he was among the bulldozer operators, along with his 19-year-old son, David. On May 29, 2025, David was killed in an explosion while driving heavy machinery in Gaza, according to a government statement. Hamas later said it targeted the machinery with an explosive device. A number of Israeli ministers attended his funeral. Eliav Libi said in a social media post in April 2026 that he began expanding outposts at a faster pace after his son’s death. Three residents said that harassment and attacks by settlers on Duma and neighboring pastoral communities increased since the establishment of one of those outposts, known as Giborai David. In August, Palestinian Thameen Dawabsheh (35) was shot dead by an off-duty soldier during a protest near Duma, the army told Reuters, saying that Dawabsheh threw stones at Israeli civilians. B’Tselem said the soldier was working as a security guard at the Giborai David outpost. Reuters could not verify whether the soldier was indeed working as a security guard or who employed him. The army did not comment on whether it would take action against the soldier accused of the shooting that led to Dawabsheh’s death. It said that incidents in which soldiers do not comply with orders are subject to a comprehensive review and appropriate disciplinary action is taken based on the findings. Duma residents say the establishment of Giborai David forcibly displaced 11 Bedouin shepherd families in March. Suleiman Dawabsheh, head of the Duma village council, said settlers seized the village’s water resources, damaged electricity supplies, and took control of about 700 hectares (1,700 acres) of land. Israeli activist Dror Etkes said the Libi brothers are trying to “empty an entire village of its residents,” referring to Duma, which has a population of about 3,000. Daifallah, a Palestinian Bedouin, said his family was among those forced to leave lands allocated to the Giborai David outpost in March. He added that settlers threw stones at his home, cut off electricity, played loud music late at night, hit his nephew’s head with a stick, and sprayed pepper spray on his son. He also showed Reuters videos of settlers walking near his home. In one of the videos, young men wearing hooded jackets bearing a pledge to commemorate Eliav Libi’s son appeared, along with a quote from the Book of Jeremiah predicting the return of Jews to the West Bank after the Babylonian exile about 2,500 years ago. Daifallah said, “They don’t want anyone on this land. They don’t want any Arabs here.” In March, the Israeli government granted Giborai David official recognition.