ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the changing settlement patterns of Israel which necessitate strong government intervention in determining investment and construction priorities in the formation of the human and political landscapes of the country. It focuses on the ways in which settlements are constructed and expanded for political purposes and the relationship between settlements, borders and related issues. The chapter discusses the Jewish landscapes. Arab—Palestinian settlement landscapes are not included although they too require a full analysis. Settlements also constitute a presence in the landscape, even in situations where agricultural pursuits are limited due to difficult soil or climatic conditions. The major focus of "settlement activity" in the post-1967 period has been the West Bank. The ideological hegemony of the rural cooperative settlements extended through to the post-state. Slogans such as "five minutes from Kfar Sava" expressed the geographical reality whereby the settlements were located just "five minutes" from the former densely populated towns of the metropolitan center.
