E1 Settlement Plan: Why Israel and the Right Wing May Dismiss Global Criticism

Over the weekend, the Israeli government invited bids for the construction of more than 1,200 housing units in the E1 settlement area in the occupied West Bank, just two months ahead of the country's general election. E1 (East 1) is designed to connect the Ma'ale Adumim settlement and other illegal settlements with East Jerusalem, thereby bisecting the West Bank into two parts. Both supporters and critics agree that building E1 would end the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state.

The move has drawn anger from the international community, including the United Nations. However, a segment of Israel's political establishment is exploiting the global wave of opposition to serve its own interests, turning support for E1 into a highlight of the election campaign.

Political gain from international criticism

Many right-wing Israeli politicians, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have long benefited from international outrage over their statements and plans, especially from European countries. Since October 2023, Netanyahu has framed international criticism of the Gaza military campaign as a "we and they" moment for the country. He frequently describes Israel as alone in a hostile world and casts himself as the only leader strong enough to stand up to the critics.

After British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband called E1 an "unacceptable and destructive act," Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar hit back at the "condescending tone" of the statement. With elections looming, how ministers respond to the E1 project could shape their political futures.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is one of the main backers of E1 and could benefit from growing right-wing Israeli support for the illegal settlement plan. His Religious Zionism party is currently struggling to cross the electoral threshold to enter this year's general election, according to analysts.

"Smotrich himself is inflating everything under his purview before the elections," Israeli analyst Nimrod Flaschenberg told Al Jazeera from Berlin, Germany. He suggested that the government's decision to issue the E1 tender so close to the Israeli election was not a coincidence, nor was the significant rise in settler violence in the West Bank, where Smotrich holds administrative control. "Both he and Netanyahu are benefiting from this outrage. Little of it is accidental," the analyst added.

International reaction to the E1 plan

Condemnation of the E1 settlement is nearly universal. On Friday, the foreign ministers of Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates rejected the E1 settlement, calling for "immediate action to prevent the E1 settlement plan." Earlier in the week, 15 European and North American leaders, including Israel's traditional allies such as Britain, France, and Germany, condemned the settlement. In a joint letter, they said E1 would "undermine the prospects for a two-state solution by creating a corridor cutting through the West Bank." Some observers argue that the lack of punitive measures if Israel proceeds has rendered their criticism toothless.

The United States did not directly criticize E1 but on Friday reiterated its opposition to Israeli annexation of the West Bank, which the illegal settlement could facilitate. "As the president has made clear, the United States does not support Israel annexing the West Bank. A stable West Bank keeps Israel safe and is consistent with this administration's goal of achieving regional peace," a State Department statement said.

Is the two-state solution truly dead?

When the construction plan was announced in August 2025, Smotrich boasted that the new settlement would bury "the idea of a Palestinian state." However, some analysts argue that the view that the situation is irreversible is one-sided, noting that illegal settlements can be dismantled, just as many Palestinian homes have been demolished by Israel since the occupation of the West Bank began in 1967.

Political analyst Ori Goldberg noted that the E1 tender came at a time when Israel faced international criticism for bombing an airport in Syria, calling the timing "a deliberate act of provocation." Thousands of Palestinians, mostly Bedouin, have seen their homes demolished, faced displacement, and been restricted from basic services as Israel expands its road network ahead of construction in the West Bank. In April 2026, 23 Palestinians, including 15 children, were displaced from the Bedouin community of az-Za'im after Israeli forces demolished their homes. The United Nations warns that the expansion of illegal settlements and related infrastructure threatens to divide the West Bank and could force 18 Palestinian communities, some of which have lived there for decades, to leave their homes.