Eight Muslim-majority countries have condemned Israel's E1 settlement policies in a joint statement, calling the plan a "dangerous escalation," after Israel opened tenders for roughly 1,200 homes in the contested corridor. The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan, and Indonesia voiced explicit opposition to the E1 project, which envisions thousands of homes between East Jerusalem and Maale Adumim.
Western pressure also intensified, with a seven-nation group including Britain, France, Germany, and Canada urging companies to shun E1 construction contracts. Britain summoned Israel's chargé d'affaires, and Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband demanded the project be halted — a move Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said he "entirely" rejected. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen called the tender unacceptable, while Belgium's Maxime Prevot echoed the condemnation.
Meanwhile, Israel has lifted restrictions on settler residency near Jenin, where the Kadim settlement was evacuated in 2005. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said 30 families returning to Kadim completed a "corrective process." Since late 2022, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has approved more than 100 new West Bank settlements.