Demographics
See also: Population statistics for Israeli West Bank settlementsAs of July 2009, 304,569 Israelis were living in 121 authorised settlements and 102 unauthorised settlement outposts on the West Bank and 192,000 Israelis were living in East Jerusalem. As of June 2011, 340,000 Israeli Jews were living on the West Bank, excluding Jerusalem (the current population figures are estimated at 350,000). Based on various sources, population dispersal can be estimated as follows:
| Jewish population | 1948 | 1966 | 1972 | 1977 | 1980 | 1983 | 1993 | 2004 | 2007 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Bank (excluding Jerusalem) | 480 (see Gush Etzion) | 0 | 1,182 | 3,200 | 17,400 | 22,800 | 111,600 | 234,487 | 276,462 | 304,569 |
| Gaza Strip | 30 (see Kfar Darom) | 0 | 700 1 | 900 | 4,800 | 7,826 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Golan Heights | 0 | 0 | 77 | 6,800 | 12,600 | 17,265 | 18,692 | 20,000 | ||
| East Jerusalem | 2,300 (see Jewish Quarter, Atarot, Neve Yaakov) | 0 | 8,649 | 76,095 | 152,800 | 181,587 | 189,708 | 192,000 | ||
| Total | 2,810 | 0 | 10,608 1 | 106,595 | 281,800 | 441,165 | 484,862 | 516,569 |
- 1 including Sinai
In addition to internal migration, in large though declining numbers, the settlements absorb annually about 1000 new immigrants from outside Israel. In the 1990s, the annual settler population growth was more than three times the annual population growth in Israel. Population growth has continued in the 2000s. According to the BBC, the settlements in the West Bank have been growing at a rate of 5–6% since 2001.
As of 2009, the total number of Israelis living in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights was 516,569. In 2011, the population had swelled to almost 600,000, comprising more that 10 percent of Israeli Jews.
Read more about this topic: Israeli Settlement