Just six months after Israel committed to a peace plan requiring it to dismantle scores of illegal Jewish settlement outposts, an inspection of 18 of the encampments found the settlers have expanded significantly.
New roads, additional trailer homes and construction on stone villas were among the striking signs of permanence.
The creation of the outposts -- many of which began with only an antenna, a water tower or a few trailers on a hill -- mirrors the birth of some older West Bank settlements, which began decades ago as unauthorized homesteads of a few trailers before the government legitimized them, gave them financial aid and installed public utilities.
The outposts -- none of which house more than a few dozen families -- are so far unauthorized, and are widely viewed as a separate issue from the 150 established West Bank and Gaza Strip settlements where some 220,000 Israelis live.
At Mitzpeh Danny, 10km from the Palestinian town of Ramallah, residents easily smuggled four large trailer homes into their burgeoning community over the last four months, well after the US-backed "road map" peace plan was accepted.
The trailers were brought into the outpost under the cover of darkness -- not out of fear the government would stop them, but as part of an effort to avoid protests and unwanted attention, resident Reuven Gafni said.
With the arrival of a new family last week, 20 families now call this hilltop community home, up from six a year ago.
With paved roads, running water and a hookup to the electric grid from a settlement across the road, the people of Mitzpeh Danny don't act like they're waiting to be evicted.
On a recent afternoon, Gafni stacked large stones to create a border for a garden. Elichai Dinner spread soil in front of his home in preparation for planting a lawn. Rami Dayan installed a canopy over a playground bench.
"We build. What they argue about, I have no idea," Dayan said.
Mitzpeh Danny and the other outposts run up and down the spine of the West Bank, separating the major population centers of Nablus, Ramallah and Jericho. Were they to become permanent settlements, the creation of a contiguous Palestinian state would be impossible.
Many Palestinians and peace activists who yearn for a two-state solution fear that is exactly what is happening.
Such outposts were supposed to end with the acceptance of the road map at a summit in June attended by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, President Bush and then-Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas.
The plan required Israel to immediately remove the estimated 60 outposts established since March 2001, when Sharon took office, and freeze construction at the rest -- as well as at older settlements.
Soon after the summit, soldiers, under the glare of television cameras, defied protesting settlers to tear down a few outposts.
The government says it has taken down or prevented the establishment of 43 outposts since the summit. It has refused to release a list of these, despite repeated requests.
Peace Now, an Israeli group opposed to the settlements, says Israel has only taken down eight of the old outposts, but settlers have established five new ones that remain standing.
The group says over 100 outposts remain, some established before March 2001. The numbers can change daily with the comings and goings of trailer homes.
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