Israel Approves Settlement That Will 'Bury' Palestinian State

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7 hrs ago

Above: Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks during a press conference near the settlement of Maale Adumim outside Jerusalem on Aug. 14, 2025. Image copyright: Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images

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The Spin

Pro-establishment narrative

The E1 project deliberately sabotages any possibility of Palestinian statehood by fragmenting the West Bank and isolating East Jerusalem. This expansion violates international law and destroys prospects for peace by making a contiguous Palestinian state impossible. The only way to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is through the two-state solution, in which Israel and a Palestinian state would peacefully coexist. Smotrich and politicians like him must be sidelined.

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Pro-Israel narrative

The E1 settlement represents a necessary response to international pressure and Palestinian territorial ambitions. Indeed, Hamas' Oct. 7 terror attack was the final nail in the coffin for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, the enclave has essentially existed as a terrorist-run proto-state run by Hamas. Given the Palestinian Authority's inefficacy, Israel has no partners for peace, and the last 20 years in Gaza prove this. A violent, terrorist-run Palestinian state would be an existential threat to Israel's security, and settlement expansion is a natural reaction to this reality.

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Pro-Palestine narrative

Though the Israeli and Western media try to portray settlers as a fringe element of Israeli society, the state was founded on the basis of ethnic cleansing and land theft. Israeli leaders on the left and right have continued to approve settlement expansion, and Palestinian land has continued to recede since 1948. Indeed, Israel annexed the West Bank in all but name a long time ago, and Israeli politicians are increasingly open about Israel's intentions — the incremental destruction of Palestine.

Al Jazeera