Britain has called on Israel to abandon its E1 settlement project in the occupied West Bank, summoning the Israeli chargé d'affaires to register a formal objection and announcing plans for a package of measures including sanctions.
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband condemned the tender as "an unacceptable and destructive act" and demanded an immediate suspension. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said he was "deeply alarmed" by the project's advancement. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar pushed back against the British demand.
The dispute follows a new tender for more than 1,200 housing units within the broader E1 zone, which envisions roughly 3,400 homes across 12 square kilometres east of Jerusalem. The plan was approved a year ago. The bid deadline falls eight days before Israel's national elections on 27 October, according to the Israeli monitoring group Peace Now.