Israel Opens Bidding for 2,167 Settlement Units Ahead of Knesset Elections

Israeli authorities are preparing to open bids for building more than 2,000 settlement units within the E1 project located between Jerusalem and the settlement of "Ma'ale Adumim", on October 25, just two days before the scheduled Knesset elections on October 27.

The Israeli Ministry of Construction and Housing updated the bidding timeline last week, setting the bid submission period from October 25 to December 21, a detail confirmed by published bid documents indicating the project includes 2,167 units.

These units come in addition to a separate bid launched on August 18 for constructing 1,234 units, meaning the two bids together cover all 3,401 units approved in the E1 plans. The previous bid was also published ahead of the Israeli elections scheduled for October 27.

Meanwhile, a new deadline has been set for another bid to establish an industrial and commercial zone spanning approximately 1,355 dunams east of Etta, in the western part of the project area, with planned access from the direction of Jerusalem.

This bid is scheduled to open on November 2 and close on January 4, 2027. Authorities had previously issued a similar bid in March as part of a project aimed at strengthening the geographic connection between Ma'ale Adumim and Jerusalem at the expense of Palestinian connectivity in the region.

The original E1 construction bid included 3,401 units, but the state separately released 1,234 of them in August 18, despite prior commitments to notify petitioners against the plan before initiating bidding procedures.

Subsequently, petitioners filed three consolidated petitions seeking an interim injunction to freeze proceedings, but the Jerusalem District Court rejected the request on September 8, while keeping the petitions under review and granting the state an extension until September 24 to submit its response.

"Adalah" stated that opening the bid for the 2,167 units ahead of the elections, along with the August bid, means the entire 3,401 units of the E1 project have now been advanced.

It added that proceeding with construction and the industrial-commercial zone will strengthen the Israeli geographic linkage between Ma'ale Adumim and Jerusalem and deepen the fragmentation of Palestinian space, arguing that the timing reflects the government's determination to establish facts on the ground that will be difficult to reverse.

The E1 project is among the most sensitive settlement initiatives due to its location between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim. Human rights groups warn that construction here will deepen the separation between northern and southern West Bank areas and undermine Palestinian connectivity with Jerusalem.