Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Thursday the signing of an agreement with illegal settlements near occupied Jerusalem to expand them under the notorious “E1 plan” — a project aimed at linking the city with settlements across the occupied West Bank.
Speaking at a press conference in the settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, Netanyahu confirmed the signing of an agreement with several nearby settlements for large-scale expansion as part of the E1 settlement scheme.
He declared: “The eastern front of Israel is not Ma’ale Adumim (east of Jerusalem), but the Jordan Valley,” in a clear reference to Israel’s push to consolidate full control over the occupied West Bank. He added: “There will be many cities like Ma’ale Adumim on our land.”
Also present at the signing was extremist Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who openly celebrated his participation in the ceremony.
In a statement issued by his office, Smotrich proclaimed:
“Together with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Housing Minister Haim Katz, and Mayor of Ma’ale Adumim Guy Yifrah — we are making history! We signed the first ‘roof agreement’ in Judea and Samaria (the biblical term Israel uses for the West Bank). This is a massive deal for Ma’ale Adumim that will bring 7,200 new housing units, including thousands in the E1 area.”
A “roof agreement” is a joint planning and financing mechanism between the Israeli government and local councils, designed to accelerate major housing projects and ensure infrastructure is prepared before new settlers arrive.
The Governorate of Jerusalem, affiliated with the Palestinian Authority, condemned Netanyahu’s announcement, warning that the deal is intended to accelerate colonial expansion and strengthen settlement projects by connecting Ma’ale Adumim with the Mishor Adumim industrial zone and other projects recently approved in the E1 corridor.
In its statement, the Governorate described the deal as “the largest of its kind in the West Bank.” It noted that the agreement allocates around 3 billion shekels (approximately $900 million) for infrastructure projects in preparation for building more than 7,600 settlement units, including 3,400 units in the E1 area.
Presenting the settlement expansion around occupied Jerusalem and across the West Bank as a long-term strategic policy, Netanyahu repeated: “There will be many cities like Ma’ale Adumim on our land.”
The United Nations, however, has consistently affirmed that all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories are illegal under international law, undermine the prospects of a two-state solution, and must be halted. Yet decades of calls have gone unheeded.
