A powerful warning reached Brussels on Wednesday, signed by more than 440 former European diplomats, ministers, and senior officials, according to Arab News. Their message was direct: the European Union must act now or risk watching a crucial piece of Palestinian land vanish under expanding settlements.
Among the signatories are well-known figures such as former EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt. They are calling for immediate, targeted sanctions including visa bans and business restrictions against those involved in Israel’s planned E1 settlement project in the occupied West Bank.
The E1 area, about 12 square kilometers in size, is set to include around 3,400 housing units. Critics warn that building there would split the West Bank into two disconnected parts, making it nearly impossible to create a viable Palestinian state. It would also cut off East Jerusalem from the rest of Palestinian territory, further complicating any future peace plan.
Israel approved the project in August 2025 and issued an initial construction tender in December. According to the letter, more detailed tenders are expected to begin on June 1. This looming deadline has added urgency, with the signatories urging EU foreign ministers to respond at their upcoming meeting on May 11.
The United Nations has also raised serious concerns. A spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres described the project as an “existential threat” to a future Palestinian state. Today, more than 500,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank, alongside roughly three million Palestinians. Settlement growth in 2025 reached its highest level since the UN began tracking it in 2017.
Former British diplomats have echoed similar concerns, warning that simple statements of condemnation are no longer enough.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and the land has long been at the center of failed peace efforts. Now, many of Europe’s most experienced foreign policy voices believe time is running out — and that without real action, the chances for a peaceful solution may soon disappear.
