Israel is moving forward with a controversial plan to build thousands of new housing units on the occupied West Bank and divide the territory into two.
The E1 Reconciliation Project has frozen for decades due to vocal international opposition, linking Jerusalem to the settlement of Male Admim, making East Jerusalem’s future Palestinian capital virtually impossible. It also split the West Bank in half, preventing the establishment of an adjacent Palestinian state.
Smotrich announced pending approvals for 3,401 new housing units on Thursday at a press conference held on the planned construction site.
“They talk about Palestinian dreams and we will continue to build Jewish reality,” Smotrich said. “This reality is a permanent burial of the ideas of the Palestinian state.
Final approval of the plan is expected next week. Sumotrich has repeatedly lobbyed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to annex the occupied West Bank and apply Israeli sovereignty to the entire territory.
In a statement, the presidency of the Palestinian National Council denounced the new reconciliation plan as “a systematic plan to steal land, Jewish it, and impose biblical and Talmud facts on conflict.”
Rawhi Fattouh said the West Bank “colonial plans are in a creep-wide annexation policy” that involves settler violence against Palestinians.
Israeli settlements on the West Bank are considered illegal under international law. However, during the first Trump administration, the State Department overturned long-standing US policies, deeming settlement “inconsistent” with international law. The Biden administration has implemented this new policy.
Smotrich announced progress in the plan at a press conference on Thursday, presenting it as Israel’s response to recent countries that announced their intention to recognize the Palestinian state.
Israel’s Reconciliation Watchdog “Peace Now” denounced progress in the E1 program, viewing it as “for the future of Israel and the opportunity to achieve a peaceful two-state solution.”
In a statement, “We stand on the edge of Deep by, and the government is pushing us forward at full speed. There is a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the horrific war in Gaza, the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
