UK condemns Israel's controversial E1 settlement plan in occupied West Bank

LONDON

Britain on Wednesday condemned the Israeli plan to build thousands of new homes in the occupied West Bank, labeling the E1 settlement plan "a flagrant breach of international law."

Foreign Secretary David Lammy condemns the decision by Israel’s Higher Planning Committee to approve the E1 settlement plan in the occupied West Bank.

"If implemented, it would divide a Palestinian state in two, mark a flagrant breach of international law and critically undermine the two-state solution," Lammy said on the US social media company X.

The foreign secretary called on the Israeli government to reverse this decision.

Israeli media reported last week that Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich approved the construction of 3,401 settler units in Ma’ale Adumim, east of Jerusalem, and 3,515 more in surrounding areas. The project aims to split the West Bank into two parts, severing connections between its northern and southern cities and isolating East Jerusalem.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry denounced the move as part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s vision for a “Greater Israel,” warning that it would entrench the occupation and eliminate the viability of a Palestinian state.

The international community, including the UN, considers the Israeli settlements illegal under international law. The UN has repeatedly warned that continued settlement expansion threatens the viability of a two-state solution, a framework seen as key to resolving the decades-long Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

In an advisory opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.