UN Denounces Israel’s E1 Settlement Expansion in West Bank
In response to Israel’s approval of West Bank settlement expansion announced on Wednesday, the UN Secretary-General strongly condemned the E1 project, calling it a “violation of international law.”
Sphinx-Albawaba News: Ahmed Ali
Following Israel’s final approval of the West Bank settlement project known as the E1 plan, UN Secretary-General António Guterres strongly condemned the decision, calling it an “existential threat to a two-state solution.”
The project was first announced on August 14, 2025, by far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and received final approval from a Defense Ministry planning commission on Wednesday. The plan calls for the construction of roughly 3,400 new housing units, primarily near the Ma’ale Adumim settlement, with the stated aim of linking West Bank settlements to occupied East Jerusalem. Smotrich declared at the time, “the plan will bury the idea of Palestinian statehood.”
In his statement issued yesterday evening, Guterres has since sharply rejected the initiative. The Secretar General has described the plan as a “direct counter to UN resolutions” warning that it would have “severe consequences for the territorial contiguity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” He urged Israel to exercise restraint, halt further settlement expansion, and meet its obligations under international law by adhering to relevant UN resolutions.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), approximately 6,463 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced from their homes since October 7, 2023, with an additional 40,000 displaced from refugee camps in the occupied West Bank.
