Report: Netanyahu to visit West Bank, sign framework for controversial construction

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will reportedly visit the West Bank settlement city of Maale Adumim on Thursday and sign a framework agreement for the construction of a large number of housing units, including the controversial E1 project.

According to Army Radio, Netanyahu will sign the agreement with Maale Adumim Mayor Guy Yifrah.

A spokesperson for Netanyahu did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Yifrah tells Army Radio that there is currently “a golden opportunity” to annex parts or all of the West Bank, but says that there is no plan to sign a framework agreement on Thursday.

“I’d be happy if he surprises us,” Yifrah says.

The Civil Administration of the Defense Ministry last month approved the E1 construction plans, which would see 3,412 housing units built in a new neighborhood of Maale Adumim located between Jerusalem and the settlement city itself.

Advocates of a two-state solution have argued that the project would practically divide the West Bank in two for its Palestinian population, sever Palestinian East Jerusalem from the West Bank, and severely harm the future viability of a Palestinian state, although some experts say solutions could be found.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said upon final approval of the project that it was “another nail in the coffin” of the idea of a Palestinian state.

Final approval of the E1 project prompted intense condemnation from numerous countries, including major European states as well as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney even included the advancement of the E1 project as one of the reasons behind his decision to recognize a Palestinian state at the upcoming UN General Assembly this month.