The OSLO II Interim Agreement of1995 has divided the lands of the West Bank into three classifications: areas A, B, and C. The Israeli military withdrew from lands classified as area A, and complete autonomy over administrative and security issues was assumed by the Palestinian Authority. Area A, according to the Oslo II agreement, covered the main cities of the West Bank, except for Hebron which had a special agreement. The city of Hebron was divided into areas of different control called H1 and H2. Area H1 is defined as area A and area H2, which houses 800 Israeli Settlers, remains under Israeli control.
In areas B, the Palestinians have full control over civil affairs while Israel continues to have overriding responsibility for security. These areas comprise most of the Palestinian towns and villages. Areas C, covering almost 74.3% of the West Bank, are under Israeli control. Areas C covers the area, which falls outside areas A and B. In this area, the Palestinian Authority provides civil services; however, Israel retains full control over land, security, people, and natural resources. The majority of Palestinian agricultural land lies in these areas.
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Prepared by:
The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem
