By Pesach Benson • April 16, 2026
Jerusalem, 16 April, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s government on Thursday approved a wide-ranging development plan for the Golan Heights aimed at expanding housing, infrastructure and economic activity in Israel’s northern region by 2030.
A key component of the NIS 1 billion ($334 million) initiative is transforming Katzrin, currently a small town, into the first city in the Golan Heights. The initiative is being advanced by Ze’ev Elkin, a minister in the Finance Ministry responsible for rehabilitation projects in Israel’s north and south.
“Today we made history in the Golan Heights: turning Katzrin into the first Israeli city in the Golan and investing nearly one billion shekels in Katzrin and the Golan,” Elkin said. He described the package as a combined effort spanning “investment in infrastructure, housing, economic growth engines, academia and public services,” adding that the aim is “to bring in thousands of new families and to establish the Golan and Katzrin as a significant demographic and economic growth hub.”
Around 50,000 Israelis live in the Golan, including Jewish and Druze localities, and smaller agricultural communities. Katzrin and the Druze town of Majdal Shams are the Golan’s largest population centers.
The decision came after a meeting earlier in the week in Jerusalem between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Katzrin council head Yehuda Dua, and Golan Regional Council head Uri Kellner.
Local leaders say the plan is designed to significantly increase the population of the area. Dua said the goal is to bring 3,000 new families to Katzrin and surrounding communities by 2030, alongside major upgrades in education and healthcare.
“We will strengthen academia, research, and the University of Kiryat Shmona [Tel-Hai College] with a branch in Katzrin, a faculty, and a veterinary hospital,” he said.
Kellner praised the plan, thanking Netanyahu for “strengthening the civilian sector and strategically bolstering the status of the Golan and Katzrin to serve as the State of Israel’s line of defense in the northern region.”
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the Six-Day War of 1967, and annexed the region in 1981. The move was not recognized internationally until the U.S. did so during the first term of President of Donald Trump.
Rockets fired by Hezbollah since 2023 have caused damage and wildfires, disrupted agriculture, and forced many residents to evacuate.
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