Seven Western leaders condemn Israel’s E1 settlement tenders

Leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, and Canada issued a joint statement on 20 August 2026 strongly condemning Israel’s decision to publish construction tenders for the long-controversial E1 settlement project in the occupied West Bank.

Joint statement from the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway and Canada. pic.twitter.com/eoVzRYAwHV
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) August 20, 2026

The statement, published on the UK government’s website and mirrored by other signatories, described the move as “unacceptable.” It argued that the E1 project “will undermine the prospect of the two-state solution by driving a wedge through the West Bank and harming the territorial contiguity of the Palestinian Territories.” The leaders reiterated that “international law is clear that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal,” a position “reaffirmed by the United Nations Security Council.” They noted the timing amid “grave instability in the West Bank with unprecedented levels of violence by settlers against civilians, and serious restrictions on the Palestinian economy.” The statement urged Israel to “retract these plans immediately and end its expansion of settlements,” warned businesses against bidding due to “legal and reputational consequences including the risk of involving themselves in serious breaches of international law,” and reaffirmed commitment to a two-state solution.

Background on the E1 project

E1 (short for East 1) refers to a roughly 12-square-kilometre area of land in the West Bank lying between East Jerusalem and the large Israeli settlement of Ma’ale Adumim (population around 38,000–40,000). Development there would effectively create continuous Israeli urban and infrastructure links from Jerusalem eastward, while critics say it would sever the northern and southern parts of the West Bank and further isolate Palestinian neighbourhoods in East Jerusalem from the rest of the territory.

Plans for residential construction in E1 date back to the early 1990s. Elements of the area were transferred to Ma’ale Adumim’s municipal jurisdiction under the Shamir government in 1991, and further planning advanced under Yitzhak Rabin in 1994. Successive Israeli governments, including those led by Rabin, Netanyahu, Sharon, and others, have viewed the project as strategically important for creating contiguous Israeli development around Jerusalem and preventing what they describe as Palestinian demographic “strangulation” of the capital. However, residential building has been repeatedly frozen for decades, primarily due to sustained opposition from the United States and European countries, which argued it would irreversibly damage prospects for a contiguous Palestinian state. Limited infrastructure work and a police headquarters were constructed earlier, but large-scale housing remained blocked.

In August 2025, an Israeli defence ministry planning committee gave final approval for approximately 3,400 housing units in E1. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has oversight of settlement policy, publicly celebrated the decision, stating that the idea of a Palestinian state was “being erased.” On 18–19 August 2026 the Israeli Housing Ministry opened tenders for the first tranche of about 1,234 units, with a bidding deadline of 19 October – just days before Israel’s scheduled general election on 27 October. Analysts note that signed contracts would be harder for a future government to reverse.

Legal and international context

The overwhelming majority of the international community, including the United Nations Security Council (notably Resolution 2334 of 2016), the International Court of Justice in its 2024 advisory opinion, and most states, considers Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, to be illegal under international humanitarian law, specifically the Fourth Geneva Convention’s prohibition on an occupying power transferring its civilian population into occupied territory. The ICJ further determined that Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful and that it has an obligation to end it as rapidly as possible. UN General Assembly resolutions have repeatedly singled out the E1 plan for particular concern because of its potential to fragment Palestinian territory.

Israel rejects this legal characterisation. It maintains that the West Bank (referred to by many Israelis as Judea and Samaria) is disputed rather than occupied territory, that settlements are lawful under its domestic law and historical claims, and that construction decisions are a matter of Israeli sovereignty and security needs. Israeli officials have long argued that demographic and security considerations around Jerusalem justify connectivity to Ma’ale Adumim.

Reactions and wider implications

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband separately described the tenders as “an unacceptable and destructive act” and said Britain had summoned Israel’s chargé d’affaires. He indicated that the UK would prepare targeted sanctions against individuals involved in settlement expansion. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar rejected the British statements as “patronizing.” Finance Minister Smotrich and other right-wing figures have framed the project as a decisive step against the two-state framework.

The E1 tenders arrive against a backdrop of heightened tension in the West Bank, including elevated levels of settler violence reported by international monitors, economic pressures on Palestinian communities, and stalled diplomatic efforts toward a negotiated resolution. Supporters of the project within Israel see it as essential for the long-term security and demographic integrity of Jerusalem. Opponents, including the seven signatory governments, Palestinian authorities, and many international organisations, view it as a practical obstacle that would make a viable, contiguous Palestinian state significantly more difficult to achieve.

The joint statement does not itself announce new sanctions or concrete enforcement measures beyond the warning to businesses, though individual countries (particularly the UK) have signalled further steps. Whether the tenders proceed to actual construction, and how the international community responds in the weeks leading to Israel’s October elections, will determine the immediate practical impact of the long-contested E1 plan.

Caption: A convoy carrying Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich arrives to attend the opening ceremony of the former Israeli settlement of Kadim near the West Bank city of Jenin, 20 August 2026. Israeli settlers have begun moving into the rebuilt West Bank settlement of Kadim, the last of four settlements evacuated in 2005. EPA/ALAA BADARNEH