Foreign ministers from Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan and 24 European countries have issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s decision to advance construction in the “E1” area east of Jerusalem, calling the move “unacceptable” and in breach of international law. The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, joined the declaration.
The statement follows final approval on Wednesday by the Higher Planning Committee of Israel’s Defence Ministry for thousands of housing units in E1, a tract of land between Jerusalem and the settlement of Ma’ale Adumim. The plan had been announced last week by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
E1 has been among the most contentious settlement proposals for more than two decades because construction there would complete a built-up corridor linking Jerusalem to Ma’ale Adumim. Diplomats and rights groups say that would sever East Jerusalem from the rest of the occupied West Bank and effectively bisect the territory that Palestinians envisage for a future state.
In their joint text, the ministers said the committee’s decision “is unacceptable and a violation of international law,” urging Israel to reverse it “in the strongest terms”. Signatories included Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.
Israel dismissed the criticism. The Foreign Ministry said it “rejects the attempt to impose foreign dictates”, arguing that Jews have an historical right to live anywhere in the Land of Israel and that Israel is acting in accordance with international law.
The E1 project, stalled in 2012 and 2020 amid pressure from Western governments, foresees about 3,400 housing units on land under Israeli control since the 1967 Middle East war. Israeli advocacy group Peace Now has said infrastructure work could begin within months, with building to follow.
International concern has centred on the plan’s potential impact on the viability of a two-state outcome. By closing the gap between Ma’ale Adumim and Jerusalem, E1 would constrain north–south movement across the central West Bank and limit Palestinian access to East Jerusalem, which Palestinians claim as the capital of a future state. The ministers warned that implementation would “make a two-state solution impossible” and called for an immediate retraction.
According to U.N. and media assessments cited by Reuters, around 700,000 Israeli settlers live among some 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Most governments consider Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention; Israel disputes this, citing security needs and historical ties.
Smotrich, a leading figure of Israel’s religious-nationalist right, has publicly framed the push for E1 as part of a broader strategy to consolidate Israeli control in the territory and to negate prospects for Palestinian statehood. The Times of Israel reported that he hailed the committee’s sign-off as erasing a “two-state delusion”.
The European External Action Service separately said on 14 August that advancing E1 “further undermines the two-state solution” and breaches international law, noting the area’s strategic role in maintaining contiguity between the northern and southern West Bank and the connection to East Jerusalem.
Wednesday’s approval comes amid an already volatile environment, with frequent Israeli military operations and settler–Palestinian confrontations in the West Bank since the Gaza war escalated. While the United States has historically pressed Israel not to proceed with E1, recent rounds of settlement advancement have gone ahead despite international objections.
The joint statement by Australia, the UK, Japan and European partners adds to a series of diplomatic démarches in recent days, including warnings from the United Nations and several EU member states that the plan would breach international law and further diminish the feasibility of negotiations. Israel maintains that final-status issues, including settlements, should be addressed in direct talks and that outside pressure is counter-productive.
