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<\/a>The E1 project would expand Jewish settlements on a stretch of land east of Jerusalem, effectively bisecting the West Bank and limiting Palestinian neighborhoods of Jerusalem from growing,<\/p>\nProposed decades ago but never finalized, the plan was abruptly moved forward this month by Israel\u2019s far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, and it received final approval Wednesday from a Defense Ministry planning committee.<\/p>\n
Smotrich described the plan as a \u201csignificant step that practically erases the two-state delusion,\u201d in an apparent rebuke of plans by some countries to recognize Palestinian statehood this fall.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Palestinian state is being erased from the table not with slogans but with actions,\u201d Smotrich continued. \u201cEvery settlement, every neighborhood, every housing unit is another nail in the coffin of this dangerous idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
The settlement plan has drawn widespread condemnation, including from the United Nations, the European Union and several Arab countries which decried the plan for breaching international law. Liberal Jewish groups in the United States and Israel have also denounced it.<\/p>\n
But a crucial roadblock \u2014 discouragement from the United States \u2014 was lifted last week when Ambassador Mike Huckabee said the United States would not oppose E1. Huckabee is a longtime support of Israeli settlements in the West Bank.<\/p>\n
The plan\u2019s approval comes amid a sharp increase in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli settlers.<\/p>\n