The legal and historical status of Gaza, the West Bank (referred to as Judea and Samaria by Israel), and Palestinian statehood is a subject of profound international dispute, with sharply contrasting frameworks under Israeli domestic policy, international law, and global diplomacy.

The Israeli and Revisionist Perspective (Disputed Territories)

Historical and Legal Claims: Proponents of this view argue that the land of Judea and Samaria formed an integral part of the ancient Jewish homeland and was recognized as such under the 1922 League of Nations Mandate for Palestine.

Rejection of Prior Sovereignty: This perspective contends that because Jordan (1948–1967) and Egypt (1948–1967) held these territories through military action that lacked broad international recognition of sovereignty, the lands were not the sovereign territory of a recognized foreign state when Israel gained control in 1967.

The "Disputed" vs. "Occupied" Distinction: Under this legal interpretation, the territories are classified as "disputed" rather than "occupied", meaning the Fourth Geneva Convention does not formally apply in the standard sense of an inter-state war, and Israel maintains a valid legal and security claim to the region pending a negotiated resolution.

The International Law and Multilateral Perspective (Occupied Territories)

Belligerent Occupation: The United Nations, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the vast majority of the international community classify Gaza and the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) as occupied territories under international humanitarian law.

Effective Control: International bodies maintain that Israel has exercised effective control over Gaza’s borders, airspace, coastline, and population registry—and over the West Bank via military administration—since 1967, establishing the criteria of an occupying power regardless of internal disengagements or administrative shifts.

Illegality of Settlements: Under this consensus, Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank violate Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits an occupying power from transferring parts of its own civilian population into occupied territory