Germany says West Bank settlement project “big mistake”

• German Chancellor Merz labeled the ‘Israeli’ government’s push for the 3,400-unit E1 construction project east of Jerusalem a "big mistake" and an "annexation move," warning that it creates an existential threat to a contiguous Palestinian state.
• While Merz called for European unity against the settlement push, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul visited ‘Israel’ to tour the site of a deadly Iranian missile impact in Beit Shemesh, marking the first high-level diplomatic visit to the country since the air campaign against Iran began.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday said a new West Bank construction project being pushed by the ‘Israeli’ government to the east of Jerusalem is a “big mistake”.

"The German government urgently calls for such steps to be refrained from," Merz said, claiming that advancing the so-called E1 project would "complicate the two-state solution".

‘Israel’ gave the green light in August to E1, a new construction project covering around 12 square kilometres (4.6 square miles) in the occupied West Bank.

The plan has been condemned by several international leaders, with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres's spokesman saying it would pose an "existential threat" to a contiguous Palestinian state.

An ‘Israeli’ settlement watchdog in January denounced the government's publishing of a tender for the construction of around 3,400 housing units in the E1 area.

Standing alongside Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis in Berlin, Merz described the developments as "annexation moves" and called on ‘Israel’ to halt the settlement push.

"It is crucial that we Europeans convey this message together," he said.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul would "emphasise this" on a trip to ‘Israel’, Merz said.

In 2025, the expansion of ‘Israeli’ settlements reached its highest level since at least 2017, when the United Nations began tracking such data, according to a UN report.

‘Israel’ approved 19 settlements in December, a move far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said was aimed at preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state.