Israel issues tender for 1,234 West Bank settlement units despite global outcry

The Israeli housing ministry issued a tender on Wednesday for 1,234 housing units in a controversial settlement project in the occupied West Bank, despite opposition from local Bedouin Palestinians, Israeli peace groups, and several Western governments. The tender is part of a larger plan for 3,401 units approved by the Israeli government last August.

The project, known as E1, covers roughly 12 square kilometres (4.6 square miles) of land between East Jerusalem and the settlement of Maale Adumim. It has drawn sharp criticism from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Canada, which have condemned the expansion as a threat to the viability of a future Palestinian state.

At the time the plans were announced, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a settler and ultranationalist, said the idea of a Palestinian state was "being erased". The tender's deadline for bids is 19 October, just days before Israel's general election on 27 October, making it harder for any future government to cancel the project.

The settlement expansion is part of a broader pattern that has drawn international concern. Since Israel occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war, it has built about 160 settlements housing approximately 700,000 Jewish settlers. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live in the same territories, which they seek — along with Gaza — for a hoped-for independent state.

Successive Israeli governments have allowed settlements to grow, despite the fierce international opposition. However, expansion has increased sharply since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in late 2022 at the head of a right-wing, pro-settler coalition, and against the backdrop of the Gaza war that began with Hamas's attack on Israel on 7 October 2023.

Opponents of the E1 project warn that it would effectively block the establishment of a Palestinian state by cutting off the northern West Bank from the south. It would also prevent the development of a contiguous Palestinian urban area connecting Ramallah, East Jerusalem, and Bethlehem.

The Israeli government maintains that the area is part of its historical and security interests, and that settlement construction is not an obstacle to peace. It also points to the need for housing for its growing population. However, international law considers settlements built on occupied land to be illegal, a view Israel disputes.

The tender was issued despite a legal challenge from Bedouin Palestinians living in the area and Israeli peace groups. The court challenge seeks to halt the project, but such cases have historically faced long delays, allowing construction to proceed in the meantime.

The timing of the tender, so close to a general election, has also raised concerns among analysts that it is aimed at appealing to right-wing voters. The political uncertainty means that the outcome of the election could shape the future of the E1 project and the wider settlement enterprise.