LONDON: Israeli authorities have issued tenders for the construction of 3,401 settlement units in the area known as E1, east of Jerusalem.

Muayyad Shaban, head of the Commission against the Wall and Settlements, said Israeli authorities had transitioned from planning and approval to implementation of the E1 plan.

The settlement, if developed, would divide the occupied West Bank, hindering the establishment of a viable and territorially contiguous Palestinian state.

After nearly 30 years of delay under intense international opposition to the plan, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich approved plans for 3,400 homes in E1 last August.

Shaban said E1 constituted “a highly dangerous escalation in the repercussions of the accelerated assault on Palestinian lands through colonial settlement plans.”

The plan would separate Jerusalem from surrounding Palestinian areas and connect the Maale Adumim settlement to the city, undermining the possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state, he added.

In 2025, Israeli authorities issued plans for 10,098 new settlement units, marking an unprecedented increase in settlement tenders.

Over 7,000 units were allocated to Maale Adumim, along with 900 units for Efrat in Bethlehem and 700 for Ariel in Salfit, reflecting a push to deepen colonial control over Palestinian land, the Commission against the Wall and Settlements reported.