Five Western democracies condemn Israel's West Bank settlement tender

Israel's housing ministry opened bids on Thursday for construction of approximately 1,234 settlement homes in the E1 area of the occupied West Bank, drawing coordinated diplomatic rejection from five major allies: the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada.

The tender, per BBC reporting, covers roughly 12 square kilometers between East Jerusalem and the settlement of Maale Adumim. The deadline for bids is October 19, days before Israel's general election scheduled for October 27.

The five-nation joint statement, released Thursday, called the decision 'unacceptable' and urged Israel to 'retract the plans immediately.' According to BBC reporting of the statement: 'At a time of grave instability in the West Bank with unprecedented levels of violence by settlers against civilians, and serious restrictions on the Palestinian economy, this decision is even more concerning.' The statement added: 'Not only will they take us further from peace, but they further undermine Israel's international standing.'

The E1 project is part of a larger plan involving 3,401 housing units that the Israeli government approved in August 2025. Per BBC reporting, the UN secretary general characterized the E1 plan as an 'existential threat' to a contiguous Palestinian state, as did Belgium's foreign minister. Opponents of the project have warned it would cut off the north of the West Bank from the south, preventing the establishment of a viable Palestinian state and blocking development of a contiguous Palestinian urban area connecting Ramallah, East Jerusalem, and Bethlehem.

The tender drew an 'outright' rejection from Israel's foreign minister in response to UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband's condemnation, according to BBC reporting, though the specific terms of rejection are not detailed in the source. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, described by BBC as an ultranationalist and settler, said at the time of the E1 plan's unveiling that the idea of a Palestinian state was 'being erased.' An Israeli court challenge to the plans was filed by Bedouin Palestinians living in the area and Israeli peace groups, per BBC reporting.

Israel has built approximately 160 settlements housing roughly 700,000 Jews since occupying the West Bank and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside those settlers. Settlement expansion has accelerated sharply since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in late 2022 at the head of a right-wing, pro-settler coalition, and has continued sharply since the Gaza war began following Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. All settlements are illegal under international law, according to BBC reporting. Israel had deferred construction plans in E1 for decades under international pressure.