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The international humanitarian law of occupation [1] contains a prohibition against deporting [2] or transferring parts of the civilian population [3] of the Occupying Power into Occupied Territory, even if they volunteer to be so transferred. Such transfers [4] are often carried out in order to alter the demographic composition of the population of the occupied territory, and constitute a grave breach [5] of Additional Protocol I, as well as being listed as a war crime [6] under the Statute of the International Criminal Court [7].

As the establishment of settlements also involves population transfers into Occupied Territory, these are prohibited under IHL. Any measure designed to expand or consolidate settlements is also illegal. Appropriation [8] of land to build or expand settlements is similarly prohibited. 

See Occupation [1]; Transfer [4]; War Crimes [6]; Grave breaches [5];

 OUTLINE

Chapter 8, IV. 8. b) Transfer of the Occupying Power's own population [9]

 LEGAL SOURCE

GCIV, 49/6 [10]

CIHL, 130 [11]

 DOCUMENT

ICRC Appeals on the Near East [12] (Parts B. [13] and C., para. 5 [14])

 CASES

ICJ/Israel, Separation Wall/Security Fence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Part A., Paras. 120 and 135) [15]

Israel, Ayub v. Minister of Defence [16]

UN, Resolutions and Conference on Respect for the Fourth Convention (Parts B. and F.) [17]

Amnesty International, Breach of the Principle of Distinction [18]

The Conflict in Western Sahara (Part A.) [19]

 BIBLIOGRAPHIC RESOURCES

AL-RAYYES Nasser, The Israeli Settlements from the Perspective of International Humanitarian Law, Ramallah, Al-Haq Institute, 2000, 139 pp.
 
MALLISON William T., “A Juridical Analysis of the Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Territories”, in The PalestineYearbook of International Law, Vol. 10, 1998-99, pp. 1-26.
 
POISSONNIER Ghislain & OSSELAND Pierre, “Les colonies israéliennes de Cisjordanie en droit international”, in RGDIP, T. 114, No. 1, 2010, pp. 63-92.
Source URL: https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/settlements

Links
[1] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/occupation
[2] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/deportation
[3] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/civilian-population
[4] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/transfer
[5] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/grave-breaches
[6] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/war-crimes
[7] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/international-criminal-court
[8] https://casebook.icrc.org/glossary/appropriation
[9] https://casebook.icrc.org/law/civilian-population#iv_8_b
[10] https://www.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/Article.xsp?action=openDocument&documentId=77068F12B8857C4DC12563CD0051BDB0
[11] https://www.icrc.org/customary-ihl/eng/docs/v1_rul_rule130
[12] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/icrc-appeals-near-east
[13] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/icrc-appeals-near-east#chapter2
[14] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/icrc-appeals-near-east#chapter3
[15] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/icjisrael-separation-wallsecurity-fence-occupied-palestinian-territory
[16] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/israel-ayub-v-minister-defence
[17] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/un-resolutions-and-conference-respect-fourth-convention
[18] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/amnesty-international-breach-principle-distinction
[19] https://casebook.icrc.org/case-study/conflict-western-sahara