Israeli settlements and the E1 area

In December 2012, the Israeli government announced that it had authorised the construction of some 3000 new housing units in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. This was widely taken to be in retaliation to the Palestinian Authority’s move at the United Nations, where Palestine was accorded non-member observer state status on 29 November. The construction of settlements in the Occupied Territories has continued almost unabated since the Six Day War in 1967, despite the general (but not Israeli) view that they are illegal under international law.

The latest announcement has brought condemnation from many sides and has further called in to question the viability of the two-state solution. Many commentators, however, think that construction in the E1 area to the east of Jerusalem is unlikely to proceed.