‘This place is ours’: Israeli PM Netanyahu signs West Bank settlement expansion plan, says ‘there will never be a Palestinian state’

Last month, the long overdue East 1 (E1) project, that was stalled amid objections from the US and European government in 2012 and 2020, received final approval from a Defence Ministry planning commission.

By: Express Web Desk

Updated: September 12, 2025 10:22 AM IST

3 min read

Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the signing ceremony for the roof agreement in Maale Adumim. (Source: @IsraeliPM/X)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed an “umbrella agreement” Thursday, officially moving forward with expansion plan that would cut across land that the Palestinians seek for a state.

“There will never be a Palestinian state. This place is ours,” Netanyahu said during a visit to the Maale Adumim settlement in the West Bank where thousands of new housing units would be added.

“We will safeguard our heritage, our land, and our security,” he added.

The office of Prime Minister Netanyahu, confirmed the signing of the deal on X, saying, “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, this evening, at the signing ceremony for the roof agreement in Maale Adumim. There will be no Palestinian state! This place is ours.”

Netanyahu was joined by nationalist members of his coalition, including far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who in August said a Palestinian state “is being erased from the table, not with slogans but with actions.”

Total investment in the project, which will include adding roads and upgrading major infrastructure, is estimated at nearly $1 billion.

The settlement, on a 12-square-kilometre (4.6sq-mile) tract of land east of Jerusalem, is known as “East 1” or “E1”.

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The move, coming two days after Israel tried to kill Hamas leaders in Qatar and was roundly condemned, may add to already strained relations with many of its allies.

Restarting the project, which aims to bisect the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, could further isolate Israel, as many Western allies, including Britain and France, announced they intend to recognise the state of Palestinian at the United Nations General Assembly later this month.

Western governments and advocacy groups have opposed the settlement, expressing concerns that it could jeopardize the prospects of a future peace agreement with the Palestinians.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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