From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, March 10, 2026
Germany’s Merz says West Bank E1 settlement project ‘big mistake’
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says a new West Bank construction project being pushed by the Israeli government east of Jerusalem is a “big mistake.”
“The German government urgently calls for such steps to be refrained from,” Merz says, 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 kilometers (4.6 square miles) in the 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 future contiguous Palestinian state. The Israeli government opposes Palestinian statehood.
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, long a contentious site.
Standing alongside Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis in Berlin, Merz describes the developments as “annexation moves” and calls on Israel to halt the settlement push.
“It is crucial that we Europeans convey this message together,” he says.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul will “emphasize this” on a trip to Israel, Merz says.
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 a range of new settlements in December, a move far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said was aimed at preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state.
The Times of Israel Community.