85 members of Congress urge Trump to intervene to halt colonial project East of Quds (Jerusalem)
WASHINGTON, June 06 (YPA) – 85 members of the US House of Representatives have called on the administration of President Donald Trump to use all available diplomatic tools to stop the Israeli settlement construction project known as E-1 in occupied East Quds (Jerusalem).
The appeal came in a letter addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, led by Democratic Representatives Mark Pocan and Jan Schakowsky. The lawmakers warned that the project has reached a critical stage as the Israeli government moves closer to completing tender procedures and signing construction contracts.
The signatories explained that the E-1 area, which spans approximately 12 square kilometers east of Jerusalem, is one of the most sensitive locations in the West Bank. They stressed that settlement construction there would separate the northern and southern West Bank and strengthen geographic contiguity between Jerusalem and the Ma’ale Adumim settlement, thereby consolidating Israeli control over a strategic area in the heart of the West Bank.
Members of Congress noted that in 2025 the Israeli government approved construction plans in the area and announced tenders for 3,401 new settlement units, in addition to commercial projects and infrastructure linked to the plan, which they described as a move toward a permanent change in the geographical and political reality.
They also pointed to additional Israeli measures related to the project, including plans for a so-called “Sovereignty Road” and steps targeting the Bedouin community in Khan al-Ahmar, saying these actions are part of a rapid process aimed at imposing irreversible facts on the ground.
The lawmakers emphasized that implementing the E-1 project would undermine the possibility of a geographically contiguous Palestinian state, urging the U.S. State Department to clearly communicate to the Israeli government that proceeding with the project contradicts declared US positions on the future of the West Bank.
The letter referenced previous statements by President Donald Trump opposing West Bank annexation, as well as official White House positions rejecting unilateral steps that could alter the final status of Palestinian territories.
The initiative is considered one of the largest congressional efforts this year related to settlement activity and reflects growing concern within Congress over the political and geographic implications of the E-1 project on the prospects for a two-state solution.
The signatories include members of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, among them Eleanor Holmes Norton, Jan Schakowsky, Jamie Raskin, Jim McGovern, Rosa DeLauro, and Betty McCollum, along with dozens of other lawmakers.
@E.Y.M