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Ir Amim said Israel has added the tender for 2,167 units to an existing one for 1,234 units issued at the end of August, for a combined 3,401 housing units in the E1 area east of Jerusalem. The rights group issued the statement late Wednesday, noting that bids for the new tender are scheduled to open on October 25. That date falls two days before parliamentary elections, a timing Ir Amim interpreted as evidence of the government’s push to establish irreversible facts on the ground. The E1 project has been criticized for decades for the way it would cut the West Bank in two and isolate East Jerusalem from Palestinian territory.
The development prompted a swift rebuke from a representative of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who said the tenders violated international law. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, an ultra-nationalist member of the ruling coalition, has previously declared that the E1 plan would “bury” a Palestinian state. Ir Amim’s assessment found that advancing the project at this juncture underscores a strategy to tie the hands of any incoming government after the vote.
Peace Now data shows that tenders for 5,667 housing units in West Bank settlements were published in 2025, marking an all-time record for such activity according to the group. The organization has tracked how these projects, if realized, could bring an additional 25,000 settlers to the territory. This surge reflects a significant increase over previous peak years for settlement expansion.
The European Union has stated that Israel’s settlements in the West Bank, including in the E1 area, are illegal under international law. A recent EU assessment called on Israel to withdraw the tender and cease all settlement expansion to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution. Such positions have been consistent across multiple international statements on the issue.
Rights groups have long argued that the E1 development would prevent a contiguous Palestinian state. Israeli officials have maintained the country’s right to build in the area citing security needs. The tender process falls under the Ministry of Construction and Housing, which according to Ir Amim has moved quickly on the project.
