Israel has opened construction bids for 1,200 new housing units in the occupied West Bank, moving forward with a long-contested settlement development known as E1 — a plan that critics warn would effectively sever the geographic continuity of any future Palestinian state. The decision, fast-tracked by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government, comes despite sustained international pressure and legal prohibitions under international law.
The E1 area lies in a strategically sensitive corridor in the central West Bank, between East Jerusalem and the large Israeli settlement of Ma'ale Adumim. Constructing a settlement bloc there would cut through the heart of the West Bank, making it structurally impossible to connect Palestinian population centres in the north and south — a move that Palestinian officials and international observers argue is designed to preclude a viable, contiguous Palestinian state. Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank have been expanding for decades and are considered illegal under international law, a position affirmed by the International Court of Justice.
The announcement has provoked a sharp response from European governments and former diplomats. A group of roughly one hundred former French and British diplomats published an open letter in the French newspaper Le Monde, accusing the Israeli government of seeking to "destroy any prospect of an independent Palestinian state" and calling on London and Paris to impose coordinated sanctions. The signatories — invoking the responsibilities of France and the United Kingdom as permanent members of the UN Security Council, both of which recognised Palestinian statehood in 2025 — called for measures including suspension of EU and UK trade and partnership agreements with Israel, a halt to arms transfers, a ban on trade with settlements, and full humanitarian access to Gaza under UN agencies including UNRWA. They described Israeli policies in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, including home demolitions and settler violence, as amounting to "ethnic cleansing."
Several Western governments have warned of potential sanctions if Israel proceeds with E1, though analysts question whether such measures would carry sufficient weight to alter Israeli policy. Palestinian officials have condemned the construction bids as a direct attack on the two-state solution, while Israeli government representatives argue the settlement construction falls within Israel's sovereign rights in areas it administers.
The E1 controversy unfolds against a broader backdrop of tension over Israeli settlement expansion, ongoing conflict in Gaza, and growing frustration among European governments over what they describe as Israel's disregard for international law and ICJ rulings. For Palestinians and their supporters, E1 is not merely a housing project but a potential geographical fait accompli — one that would lock in facts on the ground before any future negotiations can take place.