Germany, UK, France, Italy call on Israel to withdraw its E1 settlement project plans

Germany, UK, France, Italy call on Israel to withdraw its E1 settlement project plans The international community has long opposed this settlement expansion, and has voiced their grave concerns privately and publicly, the joint statement saidBERLIN, August 20. /TASS/. Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, and France assessed Israel’s decision to issue a tender for the construction of homes for Jewish settlers in the E1 zone near Jerusalem as unacceptable and urged the Israeli government to immediately withdraw these plans and halt the expansion of settlements in the West Bank, the countries’ leaders said in a joint statement. "The Israeli government’s decision to publish construction tenders for the E1 settlement project is unacceptable. The international community has long opposed this settlement expansion, and has voiced their grave concerns privately and publicly," the statement said. According to it, a settlement in the E1 zone would undermine the prospects for settling the conflict on the basis of "the two-state solution by driving a wedge through the West Bank and harming the territorial contiguity of the Palestinian territories." "International law is clear that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal. This is the position of the international community reaffirmed by the UN Security Council," the document noted. According to it, this decision "is even more concerning" given "grave instability in the West Bank with unprecedented levels of violence by settlers against civilians, and serious restrictions on the Palestinian economy." "We urge the government of Israel to retract these plans immediately and end its expansion of settlements in the West Bank. Not only will they take us further from peace, but they further undermine Israel’s international standing," the European leaders stated. According to them, companies should not consider participating in construction tenders. "They should be aware of legal and reputational consequences including the risk of involving themselves in serious breaches of international law," the statement stressed. According to the Peace Now human rights organization, the Israeli Planning Administration approved plans in August 2025 to build 3,400 housing units in the E1 zone near the large settlement of Ma'ale Adumim in the West Bank, close to Jerusalem. On August 8, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated that these actions by the Israeli authorities were aimed at "wiping out the Palestinian state." The politician, who also oversees settlement activities in the West Bank at the Defense Ministry, announced on August 14, 2025, the resumption of the project to expand the Ma'ale Adumim settlement complex and the construction of new housing units in the E1 zone. In December 2016, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2334, demanding an end to Israeli settlement activities. Israel refused to comply with the resolution's provisions. 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