Israeli Cabinet Approves Controversial West Bank Road, Fueling Annexation Fears
Israel's cabinet approved a road project to divert Palestinian traffic from a key area near Jerusalem, furthering control of E1 and sparking annexation fears among Palestinians and critics
Israel’s cabinet approved a road intended to divert Palestinian traffic from a critical area in the outskirts of Jerusalem on Saturday night. The move comes a week after the same body approved a plan to separate 13 Jewish settlements in the West Bank, territories the Palestinians view as a significant chunk of their future state and many Israelis refer to by their biblical names – Judea and Samaria.
The Israeli government said the road will “improve traffic … and allow for the continued development” of an area referred to as E1. This area has been a source of controversy between Israel, the Palestinians, and much of the international community. It is nestled between East Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim, a large settlement bloc that Israel has yet to formally declare sovereignty over.
We continue to strengthen the security of Israeli citizens and development the settlements. The new road will benefit all of the residents in the area while contributing to security and a sense of security. We will continue to act for the safety, development, and flourishing of our country everywhere.
“We continue to strengthen the security of Israeli citizens and development the settlements,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement released by his office Sunday. “The new road will benefit all of the residents in the area while contributing to security and a sense of security. We will continue to act for the safety, development, and flourishing of our country everywhere.”
According to the statement, the decision was also made to address security concerns that have arisen since Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip began in October 2023. A terrorist attack on that road a year ago killed one Israeli and wounded several others.
This is a win-win. Palestinians will be able to travel freely in their areas and the residents of Maaleh Adumim will be able to travel in a more safe and quick way.
“This is a win-win,” Guy Yifrach, the mayor of Maaleh Adumim, told The Media Line. “The Palestinians will be able to travel freely in their areas and the residents of Maaleh Adumim will be able to travel in a more safe and quick way.”
This is a meaningful step towards Israeli annexation of the area.
“The government is looking to secure a large portion of territory between Maaleh Adumim and Jerusalem and bar Palestinians from entering it,” Aviv Tatarsky, a researcher for Ir Amim, an NGO that aims to promote equality between Palestinians and Israelis in Jerusalem, told The Media Line. “This is a meaningful step towards Israeli annexation of the area.”
It’s not enough for them to control the area; they want Palestinians out of it.
“The proximity to Jerusalem and the depth of the territory within the West Bank makes it critical to the possibility of Palestinian statehood,” Tatarsky added, saying the move is part of an Israeli policy to “push Palestinians” out of the West Bank. “It’s not enough for them to control the area; they want Palestinians out of it.”
According to Yifrach, the main delay in the decision to approve the road was Palestinian and international concerns that there would be no chance for territorial continuity for the Palestinians by creating territorial continuity for Israel.
“This is an urban legend,” said Yifrach. “If Israel wanted to do so, it could have done so by constructing in the area a long time ago regardless of this specific road.”
Israel’s control over the eastern part of Jerusalem, adjacent to Maaleh Adumim, is not recognized by the majority of the international community. The US recognized Israeli sovereignty in that area in 2017, by President Donald Trump, then in his first term.
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Israeli settlement activity has accelerated under the current government, following a trend in recent years of right-wing government eager to cement Israeli presence in the West Bank.
As time passes, Israel is taking advantage of the time to create facts on the ground that will be very difficult to change or cancel that will entail very high prices.
“There really isn’t a status-quo,” said Tatarsky. “As time passes, Israel is taking advantage of the time to create facts on the ground that will be very difficult to change or cancel that will entail very high prices.”
Alongside these recent moves, the Israeli military has been operating in the West Bank for several months now. Dubbed Operation Iron Wall by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the campaign is aimed at thwarting terrorist attacks stemming from cities and refugee camps in the territories.
According to United Nations (UN) data, 99 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military since the beginning of 2025, with tens of thousands of people displaced. Almost 500 Palestinians were killed in 2024.
Mohammed Jarrar, mayor of the West Bank city of Jenin, said the city was becoming ‘uninhabitable’ in several media interviews last week. Jenin has been the focal point of IDF operations, and there have been reports that tens of thousands of Palestinian residents have left the city and its large refugee camp to find shelter in other Palestinian cities in the West Bank.
This is an Israeli effort and intent to clean and purify the refugee camps. They are taking the methods being used in Gaza, without any consideration of the residents of the area. There is extensive and extreme destruction of infrastructure and homes.
“This is an Israeli effort and intent to clean and purify the refugee camps,” Alon Cohen Lifshitz, an architect and planner at Bimkom – Planners for Planning and Human Rights, told The Media Line. “They are taking the methods being used in Gaza, without any consideration of the residents of the area. There is extensive and extreme destruction of infrastructure and homes.”
“The ultimate goal is to reduce the amount of territory that Israel does not control and thus create a matrix of military control,” Lifshitz added. “The idea is to destroy everything and create something Israel can control.”
Palestinians consider Israel’s latest moves in the West Bank as a continuation of the land grab and establishing facts on the ground that make the achievement of statehood almost impossible. For the Israeli government, an ultra-right-wing, ultra-nationalist coalition, the territories of Judea and Samaria are part and parcel of Israel that need to be controlled solely by it.
“Israel does not suffice with just controlling the areas, it is acting to rid the areas of Palestinians,” said Tatarsky. “Israeli sovereignty equates to the deportation of Palestinians.”
The plan to separate 13 Jewish settlements and recognize them as independent settlements last week is another step in that direction.
This is another action towards annexation. It gives these areas more political power and access to budgets and manpower.
“This is another action towards annexation,” Tatarsky explained. “It gives these areas more political power and access to budgets and manpower.”
Israel captured the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, during the 1967 Middle East war. Home to nearly three million Palestinians, they see the West Bank as the core of a future state—a stance supported by most of the international community, which considers Israel’s settlements in the area a violation of international law.
Areas under Israeli control but not sovereignty have a different status. Not subject to Israeli law, they are under military authority in all aspects of life.
“Maaleh Adumim needs to be officially part of the state of Israel,” said Yifrach. “We want to be part of the country. No one wants to be a second-class citizen; we pay taxes, we serve in the army, and we want to have equal rights. Nothing will change for the Palestinians in their territories.”
The city, or large settlement block, is approximately 7 kilometers from Jerusalem. For Palestinians, it is a major thorn in their national aspirations.
A leading force behind Netanyahu’s latest moves is Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also holds a position in the Defense Ministry, which gives him authority over settlement policy.
In the wake of the October 7th attack by the Gaza-based Hamas terrorist organization against southern Israel, the government has further entrenched itself in the position, deepened by a fear that a similar attack could be executed from the West Bank. Hamas has become increasingly popular in the West Bank in recent years, as the ruling Palestinian Authority has weakened in correlation.
The government feels the time is ripe. They are taking the disaster of October 7th and turning it into an opportunity to realize its dreams.
“The government feels the time is ripe,” said Tatarsky. “They are taking the disaster of October 7th and turning it into an opportunity to realize its dreams.”
The PA was established in 1994 following the signing of the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization. Controlled by the Fatah party and led by President Mahmoud Abbas, the PA governs Area A of the West Bank and shares civil control in Area B, while Israel retains full control over Area C. Israeli officials have accused the PA of both inciting and funding terrorism while failing to exercise authority in several areas, allowing terrorist networks to flourish. Israeli forces have conducted operations in areas where the PA has been either unwilling or unable to act.
Attacks against Israelis within Israel and in the West Bank have continued throughout.
According to data compiled by the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) at Tel Aviv University, there have been over 7700 terrorist incidents in the West Bank and Jerusalem area since the beginning of the war. Over 60 Israelis have been killed and hundreds injured.
“Paradoxically, the presence of the army in Palestinian areas creates friction and causes people pain and damage, which in the end creates resistance,” said Cohen Lifshitz. “The continuation of the settlements is what damages security.”
