European powers urge Israel to end W. Bank settlement expansion, warn of settler violence

Italy, France, Britain and Germany say Jerusalem is ‘undermining stability’ and harming prospects for a two-state solution

Italy, France, Britain and Germany urged Israel on Friday to stop expanding its settlements in the West Bank, saying the government was “undermining stability” and prospects for a two-state solution.

“We call on the government of Israel to end its expansion of settlements and administrative powers, ensure accountability for settler violence and investigate allegations against Israeli forces,” said the countries in a joint statement.

Noting that the situation in the West Bank had “deteriorated significantly” in the past few months, the countries said settler violence towards Palestinians was at “unprecedented levels.”

“The policies and practices of the Israeli government, including a further entrenchment of Israeli control, are undermining stability and prospects for a two-state solution,” read the statement.

The countries condemned Israel’s E1 settlement plan — a new construction project expected to build some 3,400 housing units in the West Bank over 12 square kilometers (4.6 square miles) — saying it would be a “serious breach of international law.”

“Businesses should not bid for construction tenders for E1 or other settlement developments. They should be aware of legal and reputational consequences of participating in settlement construction, including the risk of involving themselves in serious breaches of international law,” the countries said.

The statement also called on Israel to lift its financial restrictions on the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian economy.

The four countries also noted that they “strongly oppose those, including members of the Israeli government, who argue for annexation and forcible displacement of the Palestinian population.”

The West Bank settlement movement recorded an unprecedented year in 2025, with records broken — and in some cases surpassed by wide margins — across multiple measures of expansion in the contested territory, according to figures from an anti-settlement watchdog.

An annual review by the Peace Now organization earlier this year found that a record number of legal settlements were either approved or retroactively legalized in 2025; a record number of illegal settlement outposts were established; a record number of housing units were approved in the planning process; and tenders for the construction of a record number of housing units were published.

The group criticized the government, saying that while it had failed to provide homes and rehabilitation for the thousands of Israelis evacuated from the north and south during the wars following the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre, “in the settlements the government is like a well-oiled machine, investing billions and promoting construction and planning, for the benefit of a handful of settlers in the government’s camp.”

Since the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023, near-daily violence has also rocked the West Bank, which Israel has controlled since 1967.

The joint statement came after a tense week in European-Israeli relations following the publication of a video that revealed the harsh treatment of European activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla while in Israeli custody.

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir published the video that showed activists forced to kneel with their foreheads to the ground and their hands tied.

Italy and Spain later called on the EU to sanction Ben Gvir, while Ireland urged the EU to take action against Israel over the activists’ treatment, according to a leaked letter seen by AFP.

The United Kingdom, meanwhile, summoned Israel’s most senior diplomat in Britain following what it called the “inflammatory video.”

Also on Friday, the Dutch House of Representatives voted in favor of a government-backed measure to ban importing and selling products from “illegal Israeli settlements,” Foreign Trade Minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma announced on X.

“The cabinet is sending a strong signal to Israel — the Netherlands doesn’t want to contribute to maintaining” the settlements, Sjoerdsma says.

He called on the rest of Europe to pass similar measures, noting that the International Court of Justice had ruled that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal and that Israel has effectively annexed large parts of the territory.

Sjoerdsma linked to a statement from the Dutch cabinet that indicates the ban will also apply to Israeli communities in the Golan Heights, which Israel annexed in 1981.