More than two years after unveiling the “Million in Samaria” vision to grow the region’s population to one million by 2050, officials from the Shomron Regional Council and the city of Rosh HaAyin launched a joint call Monday to establish a new city in the West Bank hills east of Rosh HaAyin.
The proposed city, to be named “East Rosh HaAyin,” would house more than 130,000 residents and be built on state land currently used as an agricultural outpost in the western Samaria highlands. Its backers say the city would function both as a demographic boost and a “security belt” for central Israel, protecting areas like Rosh HaAyin from future threats akin to the October 7 Hamas terror attack.
Yossi Dagan, head of the Shomron Regional Council, and Rosh HaAyin Mayor Raz Sagi made their announcement during a visit to the Lerner family farm, located between the communities of Peduel, Leshem, Bruchin and Alei Zahav. The site overlooks Rosh HaAyin and, according to Dagan, symbolizes how close and strategically vital the Samaria ridgelines are to Israel’s central cities.
“This farm is already the beginning of Rosh HaAyin’s protective belt,” Dagan said. “When we stand here and see the city’s rooftops beneath our fingertips, we understand how critical settlement in Samaria is—not only ideologically, but strategically.”
The farm also includes the “Shir David” ranch, named after civilian contractor David Libi, who was killed in the recent war in Gaza. Dagan and Sagi were joined at the site by former Knesset member Moshe Feiglin, who helped initiate the project.
In the past two months, teams from both municipalities have been developing a joint planning framework. According to a statement released by the two leaders, the city would stretch from the eastern neighborhoods of Rosh HaAyin to the Leshem settlement, forming a continuous urban and rural bloc.
“We must create a chain of farms that will quickly grow into a city—East Rosh HaAyin,” said Mayor Sagi. “We call on the government to start with the eastern neighborhoods and extend all the way to Leshem. This is where we will live and work together.”
Dagan added: “We urge the government to pass an official resolution to establish a new city here that will serve as a real security belt for Israel’s heartland.”