ISRAEL’S FAR-RIGHT Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced yesterday that he intends to approve plans for more than 3,400 homes in the long-delayed E1 settlement area of the occupied West Bank, a move which he said could effectively “bury” the idea of a Palestinian state.

Speaking at the illegal site near the settlement of Maale Adumim east of Jerusalem, Smotrich hailed the project as “Zionism at its best” and said the construction would send a clear message to countries considering recognition of a Palestinian state.

“Anyone in the world who tries today to recognise a Palestinian state will receive an answer from us on the ground,” he said, referring to roads, neighborhoods, and Jewish families building their lives in the area.

Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

The E1 plan, first proposed in the 1990s, would connect Jerusalem with the existing settlement of Maale Adumim, cutting off the northern and southern West Bank from each other and undermining the possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The area spans roughly 12 square kilometres, and has remained frozen for decades amid strong international opposition.

All settlements in the West Bank, occupied since 1967, are considered illegal under international law. They violate the Fourth Geneva Convention, which bans an occupying power from transferring its population to the area it occupies.

An Israeli army bulldozer demolishes homes in the Palestinian West Bank. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Smotrich, who also holds a role in Israel’s Ministry of Defence overseeing settlement approvals, called for Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, using the Biblical term “Judea and Samaria.”

“On this important day, I call on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to abandon once and for all the idea of partitioning the country,” Smotrich said.

The announcement comes amid growing international support for a two-state solution, with countries including Britain and France planning to recognise a Palestinian state later this year.

Israel’s settlement expansion has drawn sharp criticism from the United Nations, European Union, Germany, Saudi Arabia, and Palestinian officials.

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, warned that advancing construction in E1 “would put an end to the prospects of a two-state solution” by severing the northern and southern West Bank.

The Palestinian foreign ministry described the project as a continuation of “the occupation’s plans to destroy the opportunity for the establishment of a Palestinian state,” calling for international intervention.

The EU’s chief diplomat Kaja Kallas called the plan “a breach of international law” that further undermines a two-state solution, while Germany urged Israel to “stop settlement construction.”

Israel’s decision to further advance settlements in the West Bank is a breach of international law and will damage the viability of the two-state solution.

My statement here: https://t.co/ggWjIMnHEH

— Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) August 14, 2025

Norway’s foreign minister Espen Barth Eide described the move as an attempt to “appropriate land owned by Palestinians to prevent a two-state solution.”

Israeli NGOs monitoring settlement activity, including Peace Now, condemned the E1 plan as “deadly for the future of Israel and for any chance of achieving a peaceful two-state solution.”

Peace Now noted that the final approval hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday and warned that infrastructure work could begin within months, followed by housing construction within about a year.

The West Bank is home to roughly three million Palestinians and approximately 500,000 illegal Israeli settlers.

Last month, a prominent Palestinian activist and teacher Awdah Hathaleen was shot dead by an Israeli settler in the West Bank.

Additional reporting from AFP