Britain said it had summoned the Israeli chargé d’affaires and called for an end to a major settlement project in the occupied West Bank after Israeli authorities issued a tender for the construction of more than 1,200 settlement units in the area.
Israel gave the green light in August to the E1 settlement project, which covers nearly 12 square kilometers in the occupied West Bank, drawing international condemnation. UN Secretary-General António Guterres said at the time that the project “threatens the viability of a fully independent, sovereign and geographically contiguous Palestinian state.”
The project would further isolate occupied and annexed East Jerusalem, where the majority of residents are Palestinians, from the West Bank.
British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband described the move as an “unacceptable and destructive act,” saying it would “jeopardize the prospects for a two-state solution.”
“The Israeli government must immediately halt its plans for E1, withdraw the tender, and stop all forms of settlement expansion,” he said in a statement.
Miliband said he had conveyed the message directly to his Israeli counterpart, Gideon Sa’ar, and that the Israeli chargé d’affaires had been summoned to the Foreign Office.
The British government also pledged to announce a “comprehensive package of measures” in the coming weeks, including sanctions targeting those involved in “illegal settlement expansion.”
“Britain will not stand by and accept the destruction of the two-state solution,” Miliband added.
The plan calls for the construction of 3,400 settlement units in the West Bank, in a project that would divide the territory into two parts and potentially prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The latest tender covers more than 1,200 housing units, according to Israeli non-governmental organization Peace Now.
The organization said Israel’s Housing Ministry issued the tender on August 18 and immediately opened the bidding process.
The deadline for submitting bids is October 19, one week before Israel’s legislative elections scheduled for October 27.
Peace Now said the housing units represent roughly one-third of the E1 project and accused the government of attempting to advance its construction commitments ahead of the elections.
Israel imposes strict restrictions on Palestinian movement in the West Bank, requiring Palestinians to obtain permits from the authorities to pass through checkpoints and enter East Jerusalem or areas inside Israel.
Last year, Britain and France were among 21 countries that condemned Israel’s approval of the project, describing it as a violation of international law and calling on Israel to reverse the decision.
Outside East Jerusalem, around three million Palestinians live in the West Bank alongside approximately 500,000 Israelis residing in settlements that the United Nations considers illegal under international law.
AFP
