GCC, Arab-Islamic nations, Western allies condemn Israel's E1 settlement plan

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), along with a coalition of Western nations including the European Commission, has issued strong condemnations of Israel's ongoing settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank. The primary focus of their concern is the proposed E1 settlement project, which they warn could severely disrupt Palestinian territorial contiguity and jeopardize prospects for a two-state solution.

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These practices by the Israeli occupation forces undermine the prospects of achieving peace and threaten international and regional efforts aimed at establishing an independent Palestinian state.

GCC Secretary General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi stated that advancing such plans constitutes a "blatant challenge to international legitimacy" and systematically undermines the Palestinian people's rights. He emphasized that these actions threaten peace efforts and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Albudaiwi urged the international community to adopt a "serious and responsible stance" to halt settlement policies and oppose measures altering the demographic and geographic reality of the Palestinian territories.

In a joint statement on August 20, leaders from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the European Commission, the Netherlands, Canada, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Austria, and Greece also denounced Israel's decision to publish construction tenders for the E1 settlement. They declared the decision "unacceptable" and warned it would "undermine the prospect of the two-state solution by driving a wedge through the West Bank and harming the territorial contiguity of the Palestinian Territories."

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The Israeli Government's decision to publish construction tenders for the E1 settlement project is unacceptable.

The coalition reaffirmed the international community's long-standing opposition to settlement expansion, citing the illegality of Israeli settlements in the West Bank under international law, as recognized by the UN Security Council. The statement also expressed alarm over unprecedented levels of settler violence against Palestinians and significant restrictions on the Palestinian economy. The leaders implored the Israeli government to "retract these plans immediately and end its expansion of settlements in the West Bank," warning that the project would further distance the region from peace and damage Israel's international standing.

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The project could undermine the prospect of the two-state solution by driving a wedge through the West Bank and harming the territorial contiguity of the Palestinian Territories.