Key facts
- The UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada condemned Israel's plans for settlement homes in the E1 area.
- The UK plans to announce measures, including sanctions, against those involved in the E1 settlement expansion.
- The E1 project is seen as an obstacle to a two-state solution and a contiguous Palestinian state.
- US Ambassador Mike Huckabee warned settlers against seizing Palestinian American land, citing potential US sanctions.
Israel's plans to open tenders for approximately 1,200 settlement homes in the strategically significant E1 area, east of Jerusalem, have drawn strong condemnation from major Western powers. The UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada issued a joint statement calling the move concerning, particularly amid rising violence in the West Bank. They warned that the plans would further undermine Israel's international standing and move the region further from peace. The E1 project, which covers about 12 sq km between East Jerusalem and the Ma'ale Adumim settlement, is viewed by opponents as a move that would effectively sever the north of the West Bank from the south, preventing the establishment of a contiguous Palestinian state. The UK's Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband, had previously condemned the expansion, drawing an "outright" rejection from Israel's foreign minister. The Israeli housing ministry issued a tender for 1,234 units despite legal challenges and international opposition. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, an ultranationalist, had previously stated that the idea of a Palestinian state was being "erased" with such developments. Israel has built approximately 160 settlements housing 700,000 Jews since occupying the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967, with an estimated 3.3 million Palestinians living alongside them. Settlement expansion has accelerated under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government, particularly since the start of the Gaza war. In a separate development, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee warned Israeli settlers against seizing Palestinian American land, citing potential U.S. sanctions and referencing the Ten Commandments.