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2w ago

Israel Advances E1 Settlement Plan, 'Burying' Prospect of Palestinian State

The plan seeks to connect Maʽale Adumim to Jerusalem, confronting growing calls for Palestinian state recognition.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich holds a map of an area near the settlement of Maale Adumim, a land corridor known as E1, outside Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank, on August 14, 2025, after a press conference at the site.
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A view of part of the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, August 14, 2025. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
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Overview

  • Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the advance approval of approximately 3,400 housing units in the E1 corridor between Jerusalem and the Maʽale Adumim settlement.
  • The scheme still requires planning committee and council endorsements before infrastructure work can start in the coming months and home construction within about a year.
  • Palestinian authorities, Israeli and international rights groups, and several Western governments condemned the proposal as illegal under international law and detrimental to two-state viability.
  • Analysts warn that building in E1 would sever the West Bank into northern and southern enclaves, undermining the territorial contiguity needed for a viable Palestinian state.
  • Smotrich claimed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump backed the revival of the plan, a claim that neither leader has publicly confirmed.