RAMALLAH / PNN /
Palestinian officials have warned that Israel’s continued settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, particularly in the Ma’ale Adumim bloc and the adjacent E-1 area, poses a direct threat to the viability of the two-state solution. The warning comes ahead of a key hearing by Israel’s Higher Planning Council on August 6, which will address objections to the construction of over 3,400 new settlement units in the controversial E-1 area.
According to the Negotiations Affairs Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the approval of the E-1 project would amount to the de facto annexation of a strategic corridor that links Ma’ale Adumim to East Jerusalem—severing East Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank and permanently undermining the prospects for a contiguous Palestinian state.
The plan, revived by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2012 and advanced despite repeated international objections, is seen as the most aggressive effort yet to entrench Israeli control over occupied territory. The current Israeli government, Palestinian officials said, is exploiting global distraction caused by the war in Gaza to push forward with large-scale settlement construction.
In April, Israel approved new infrastructure projects—dubbed the “Sovereignty Road” and “Road 80 Substitute”—aimed at facilitating settler movement while restricting Palestinian access. These roads, coupled with efforts by Israel’s national water company Mekorot to shift infrastructure in support of settlements, are seen as part of a broader annexation strategy.
Settlement Growth and Impact
The Ma’ale Adumim settlement bloc, including satellite settlements like Kfar Adumim, Almon, Kedar, and Mishor Adumim, is now home to more than 47,500 Israeli settlers and spans 58 square kilometres, reaching 14 kilometres into Palestinian territory. Since April 2024, over 3,165 new settlement units have been approved, with thousands more in the pipeline across the West Bank in 2025.
The reactivation of the E-1 project would add over 3,400 new housing units and introduce large-scale industrial and commercial zones on more than 12 square kilometres of land confiscated from nearby Palestinian villages.
As of mid-2025, the settler population in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has exceeded 740,000. According to the PLO’s Negotiations Support Unit, more than 97,000 new settlement units are in advanced planning or construction stages—42,000 in the West Bank and 55,000 in East Jerusalem—signalling an unprecedented pace of expansion.
Consequences for Palestinians
Palestinian officials say the E-1 plan would further fragment Palestinian territory, cutting off East Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank and severing connections between the northern and southern parts of the territory. At least 18 Bedouin communities, home to approximately 3,700 people—mainly from the Jahalin and Sawahreh tribes—face imminent forced displacement, marking their third expulsion since 1948.
The proposed infrastructure and land seizures will severely restrict Palestinian freedom of movement, isolate neighbourhoods, and deepen the fragmentation that already hampers the formation of an independent Palestinian state.
Violations of International Law
Settlement activity in Ma’ale Adumim, E-1, and across the occupied West Bank is considered a flagrant violation of international law. Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits the transfer of an occupying power’s civilian population into occupied territories. The expansions also defy multiple UN Security Council resolutions, including 242, 338, and 2334, as well as the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion issued in July 2024.
Key international actors, including the United Nations, France, the UK, Jordan, and the ICJ, have condemned the E-1 plan as illegal and dangerous for peace prospects.
Urgent Recommendations
The PLO is calling for immediate international action to halt all settlement activity, including the E-1 and Ma’ale Adumim expansions. Palestinian officials urge an end to financial incentives for settlers and demand the cessation of land confiscation, home demolitions, and forced displacement.
They also call for international legal support and humanitarian aid to threatened Bedouin communities, including access to water, electricity, and healthcare services. Monitoring mechanisms are needed to respond to ongoing displacement and settlement activity.
The PLO recommends that UN member states—particularly Security Council permanent members—issue a unified warning to Israel and use diplomatic leverage, including conditionality in bilateral relations, to halt the expansion. Legal accountability mechanisms must be reinforced through international courts and diplomatic coordination with the State of Palestine.
Finally, officials are urging intensified global public diplomacy to raise awareness of the irreversible impact of settlement expansion and to rally international support for peace based on justice and Palestinian self-determination.
