ABNA24 - Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has escalated his rhetoric against the occupied West Bank, calling for a war there similar to Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip and demanding the dismantling of the Palestinian Authority. His remarks came as Israel’s attorney general ordered the deadline for bids in a settlement tender under the E1 plan to be postponed until after the Knesset elections scheduled for October 27.
According to reports by Haaretz and Israel Hayom, the deadline for the tender, which covers the construction of 1,234 settlement units, was postponed by one month. A spokesperson for Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said the decision was intended to reduce concerns that the tender could be used for election campaigning, which is prohibited by law.
The municipality of the Ma’ale Adumim settlement announced that it intends to challenge the postponement in court, arguing that the tender had advanced through a professional and orderly process and that delaying it at this stage carries political implications of its own.
E1 plan draws international opposition
The tender was announced on August 18 and covers seven settlement compounds containing 1,234 housing units, part of a total of 3,401 units approved under the E1 plan.
The E1 area lies between occupied Jerusalem and the Ma’ale Adumim settlement in the West Bank. Settlement construction there has drawn widespread international opposition because of its impact on geographic contiguity between different parts of the West Bank and the prospects for establishing a future Palestinian state. International objections prevented construction projects in the area from moving forward for decades before the Israeli government recently took steps to advance the plan.
According to Haaretz, citing sources, the Israeli government had informed the German and British governments that construction in the area would not be advanced before the elections. The tender was, nevertheless, issued.
Another tender for the construction of more than 2,100 settlement units is also expected to be issued, with the deadline for submitting bids reportedly scheduled just two days before the Knesset elections.
The E1 tender announced in August drew condemnation from several European countries, including Britain, France, Germany and Italy, as well as Arab and Muslim countries. The United States has also said it does not support the annexation of the West Bank, while Britain, with support from France and Canada, has taken trade measures related to Israeli settlements.
The Palestinian Authority has previously warned of the dangers the E1 plan poses to the territorial unity and geographic contiguity of Palestinian territory, while Western and Arab countries have said its implementation would have far-reaching consequences for the future of the West Bank.
Smotrich: “We must wage war on West Bank”
Alongside the settlement push, Smotrich escalated his rhetoric regarding the occupied West Bank, saying Israel should deal with the territory militarily in the same way it has dealt with the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli minister made the remarks during an appearance on a political podcast produced by Yedioth Ahronoth and Ynet. He was responding to a question about warnings from Israeli military commanders and security officials that conditions in the West Bank could deteriorate further amid escalating settler attacks and growing tensions on the ground.
“I think we must wage war on the West Bank. We have to do there what we did in Gaza and dismantle the Palestinian Authority as a terrorist authority,” Smotrich said.
He added that, in his view, the Israeli military should operate in the West Bank in the same manner it operated in the Gaza Strip. “Just as you dismantled Hamas in Gaza, there must be no terrorist infrastructure in Judea and Samaria,” he said, using the Israeli term for the occupied West Bank.
“No terrorists. No weapons. No tunnels,” Smotrich continued, adding that he wanted those he described as “terrorists” killed and weapons confiscated.
Smotrich also referred to three Palestinian refugee camps whose residents were displaced during Israeli military operations, describing their depopulation as part of what he characterized as measures against “terrorism.”
Addressing Palestinian movement in the West Bank, Smotrich said that if vehicles were used as weapons, Palestinians would not be able to travel on roads he described as “our roads,” pointing to the possibility of further restrictions on Palestinian movement.
Military escalation and settlement expansion
Smotrich’s remarks come as increasingly aggressive rhetoric toward the occupied West Bank coincides with new settlement measures, most notably efforts to advance construction in the E1 area, which holds particular geographic significance because of its location between occupied Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim.
The postponement of the E1 tender does not mean the project has been canceled or abandoned. According to the Israeli attorney general’s office, the decision relates to concerns over the timing of the tender and its potential use for election campaigning, while the Ma’ale Adumim municipality has announced plans to challenge the postponement in court.
The E1 plan therefore remains part of Israel’s settlement expansion agenda as international debate continues over its consequences for the geography and future of the occupied West Bank. At the same time, Smotrich is pushing for an even more aggressive military approach toward the territory and the Palestinian Authority.
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