Overview

• Israel’s Defence Ministry planning committee gave final approval on Aug. 20 for roughly 3,400–3,500 homes in the E1 area to link Ma’ale Adumim with Jerusalem.
• Opponents say the buildout would bisect the West Bank and sever access to East Jerusalem across a strategically vital 12-square-kilometer corridor.
• Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich celebrated the decision as burying a Palestinian state, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not commented publicly.
• Peace Now estimates infrastructure could start within months and housing within about a year, as Bedouin communities report demolition and evacuation notices tied to the plan.
• Twenty-one countries including the UK, Australia and Japan urged reversal alongside the EU and UN, while the U.S. ambassador signaled Washington would not interfere.