• Israel had frozen construction there since 2012 due to objections from the US, Europe, and other powers, who saw it as a threat to a future Palestinian peace deal
• The announcement comes as many countries said they would recognize a Palestinian state in September

MAALE ADUMIM: Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said work would start on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and cut if off from East Jerusalem, a move his office declared would “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state.

Standing at the site in Maale Adumim, Smotrich said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had agreed to the revival of the E1 scheme, though there was no immediate confirmation from either.

“Whoever in the world is trying to recognize a Palestinian state today will receive our answer on the ground. Not with documents nor with decisions or statements, but with facts. Facts of houses, facts of neighborhoods,” Smotrich said.

Israel froze construction plans at Maale Adumim in 2012, and again after a revival in 2020, because of objections from the US, European allies and other powers who considered the project a threat to any future peace deal with the Palestinians.

The move could further isolate Israel, which has watched some of its Western allies condemn its military offensive in Gaza in the war with Palestinian militant group Hamas and announce they will recognize a Palestinian state.

Palestinians fear the settlement building in the West Bank — which has sharply intensified since the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that led to the Gaza war — will rob them of any chance to build a state of their own in the area.

In a statement headlined “Burying the idea of a Palestinian state,” Smotrich’s spokesperson said the minister had approved the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem.

In Maale Adumim, Smotrich told Reuters the plan would go into effect on Wednesday, without specifying what would happen on that day.

The Palestinian foreign ministry called the plan an extension of crimes of genocide, displacement and annexation. Israel has long rejected accusations of genocide and rights abuses and said it is acting in its own defense.

Hamas described the plan as part of Israel’s “colonial, extremist” policies and called on Palestinians to confront it. Jordan’s foreign ministry condemned the move as a flagrant violation of international law.

Peace Now, which tracks settlement activity in the West Bank, said there were still steps needed before construction, including the approval of Israel’s High Planning Council. But if all went through, infrastructure work could begin within a few months, and house building in about a year.

“The E1 plan is deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution. We are standing at the edge of an abyss, and the government is driving us forward at full speed,” Peace Now said in a statement.

HOUSE BUILDING ‘IN A YEAR’

Palestinians were already demoralized by the Israeli military campaign which has killed more than 61,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, and fear Israel will ultimately push them out of that territory.

About 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel annexed East Jerusalem in a move not recognized by most countries but has not formally extended sovereignty over the West Bank. The UN and most world powers say settlement expansion has eroded the viability of a two-state solution by fragmenting Palestinian territory. The two-state plan envisages a Palestinian state in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, existing side by side with Israel.

Israel disputes this, citing historical and biblical ties to the area, which it calls Judea and Samaria, and says the settlements provide strategic depth and security.

Most of the international community considers all settlements illegal under international law, a position backed by numerous UN Security Council resolutions, including one which called on Israel to halt all settlement activity.

Israel rejects this interpretation, saying the West Bank is “disputed” rather than “occupied” territory.

Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand imposed sanctions in June on Smotrich and another far-right minister who advocates for settlement expansion, accusing both of them of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

Smotrich’s popularity has fallen in recent months with polls showing his party would not win a single seat if parliamentary elections were held today. His party largely draws its support from settlers. 

REUTERS