The European Union urged Israel on Friday to halt the E1 colonial project and freeze additional large‑scale colonialist schemes in and around occupied Jerusalem, warning that the plans would further fragment the occupied West Bank, displace Palestinian communities, and undermine the viability of a future Palestinian state.
The bloc said the E1 project, which includes 3,401 planned colonial units east of occupied Jerusalem, would create a continuous belt of Israeli colonies between Ma’ale Adumim and the city, effectively severing the southern and northern parts of the occupied West Bank.
It also warned that Israel’s push to advance the so‑called “Sovereignty Road,” running between Al -Ezariyya and Az-Za’ayyem, east of occupied Jerusalem, would close the area entirely to Palestinian movement and isolate about three percent of the West Bank.
In its statement, the EU expressed deep concern over two additional colonialist schemes in occupied Jerusalem: the Atarot plan, which targets the land of the former Jerusalem International Airport and envisions nearly 9,000 colonial units on more than 1,200 dunams north of the city, and the “Nahalot Shimon” project in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, which would demolish the Ard an‑Naqqa’ area and replace it with a colony of 316 units, displacing approximately 40 Palestinian families.
The EU said these projects, along with the E1 plan, would accelerate the fragmentation of Palestinian territory, entrench Israeli control over key corridors, and further obstruct the possibility of establishing a contiguous Palestinian state with occupied Jerusalem as its capital.
The EU stated that the colonial policies pursued by the Israeli government represent a major obstacle to peace, carry the risk of further instability in the West Bank, threaten to displace thousands of Palestinians, and encourage increased violence by illegal paramilitary Israeli colonizers.
It added that the expansion of colonies and the demolition of Palestinian homes further undermine the long‑term prospects for a negotiated two‑state solution and erode the viability of any political settlement that includes occupied Jerusalem as the future capital of both states.
The bloc called on Israel to reverse its recent acceleration of settlement approvals across the occupied West Bank, including in occupied East Jerusalem, stressing that all Israeli colonies in occupied territory are illegal under international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention and multiple UN Security Council resolutions.
It urged Israel to uphold its obligations as an occupying power and to protect the Palestinian population living under occupation, noting that forced displacement, land confiscation, and demographic engineering violate international legal standards and contribute to rising tensions on the ground.
The E1 project has long been viewed by diplomats, legal experts, and human‑rights organizations as one of the most consequential settlement schemes in decades.
Its strategic location between Ma’ale Adumim and occupied Jerusalem would cut the West Bank in half, isolate occupied East Jerusalem from surrounding Palestinian towns, block Palestinian urban expansion in the Jerusalem periphery, and threaten the viability of a future Palestinian capital.
It would also force the displacement of Bedouin communities, including Khan al Ahmar, which has been repeatedly targeted for demolition.
Although international pressure has stalled the project for years, Israeli authorities have revived it in recent planning cycles, advancing hearings and approvals despite widespread opposition.
The Atarot and “Nahalot Shimon” plans form part of a broader effort to expand Israeli control over occupied Jerusalem and reshape its demographic and geographic landscape.
The Atarot project would create a large colonialist bloc deep inside Palestinian urban areas and sever the connection between Ramallah in the central West Bank and occupied Jerusalem.
The “Nahalot Shimon” plan in Sheikh Jarrah would displace long‑established Palestinian families and embed a new colony in the heart of a densely populated Palestinian neighborhood, intensifying tensions in an area already at the center of international scrutiny.
The EU reaffirmed that Israeli colonialist expansion, home demolitions, and forced displacement are incompatible with Israel’s responsibilities under international law and warned that continued colonial expansion will deepen instability, fuel violence by illegal paramilitary Israeli colonizers, and entrench a system of fragmentation across the occupied Palestinian territory.
It concluded that reversing these policies is essential to preserving the possibility of a negotiated political solution and preventing further deterioration on the ground.
All of Israel’s colonies in the occupied West Bank, including those in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under International Law, the Fourth Geneva Convention, in addition to various United Nations and Security Council resolutions. They also constitute war crimes under International Law.
Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits collective punishment and acts of terror against civilian populations.
Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states: “The Occupying Power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” It also prohibits the “individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory”.
Articles 53 and 147 prohibit the destruction of civilian property and classify pillage as a war crime.
