Britain’s import ban on goods from Israeli settlements has been framed as a response to a sharp acceleration in construction in the occupied West Bank. The move follows an advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice in 2024 that described settlement activity as illegal and called for it to stop. At the centre of the controversy is the planned E1 settlement bloc on the outskirts of Jerusalem, a development that would link the large settlement of Maale Adumim to East Jerusalem and alter the territory’s contiguity.
The E1 project now includes approved plans for thousands of housing units alongside commercial and regional services. Final planning approval in August 2025 authorised over 3,400 homes, and a subsequent tender in August 2026 sought builders for 1,200 units in the southern sector, with bidding closing on October 19 ahead of Israel’s October 27 elections. Israeli authorities have also ordered the evacuation of the community of Khan al-Ahmar in May 2026 to clear the way for construction, a step that would involve the displacement of Palestinian residents.
International concern has translated into coordinated policy: the UK’s measure has been accompanied by similar actions announced by Canada, France, Ireland and Spain. Rights organisations report that settlement approvals have continued at pace — more than 102 new settlements were approved since 2022, according to Peace Now — and that settler activity and access restrictions have displaced thousands of Palestinians. The UN has documented significant displacement and rising humanitarian pressure across the territory since 2023.
The build-up around E1 is part of a wider shift in Israeli territorial control and strategy following the October 2023 attacks by Hamas and the subsequent war in Gaza. The conflict saw more than 1,200 Israelis killed and around 250 people taken hostage, and Gaza has suffered heavy casualties. Politicians within the Israeli government, including Benjamin Netanyahu and Bezalel Smotrich, have linked settlement expansion to a rejection of a Palestinian state, while figures such as Itamar Ben-Gvir have raised proposals with regional implications. States backing import restrictions say the measures are intended to deter further construction that would fragment the West Bank and deepen the displacement and rights challenges facing Palestinians.
