Israel poised to start construction of bypass through heart of West Bank

"Israel plans to start work next month on a bypass road that will close off the heart of the occupied West Bank to Palestinians and cement the de facto annexation of an area critical for the viability of a future Palestinian state. The road is a key part of the blueprint for a vast illegal new settlement in the E1 area east of Jerusalem, which would fragment the occupied West Bank."

"Designed as a sealed transit corridor for Palestinian vehicles, the bypass will provide Israel with a pretext to bar Palestinians from existing roads in the planned settlement area, where only Israeli vehicles will be permitted. The bypass was nicknamed sovereignty road when initial construction was approved in 2020 by the then defence minister, Naftali Bennett, who celebrated the project's role as a tool of annexation. We're applying sovereignty in deeds, not words, he said at the time."

"The E1 area covers about 3% of the occupied West Bank, a triangle of land between Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Ramallah that is critical for the development and prosperity of a future Palestinian state. Opponents call the bypass apartheid road because it forces Palestinians and Israelis into separate transport systems. It will also be an instrument for ethnic cleansing of remaining Palestinian communities in the area said, Hagit Ofran, a settlement expert at the Israeli advocacy group Peace Now."

Israel plans to begin work on a bypass road that will close off the heart of the occupied West Bank to Palestinians and cement de facto annexation. The road underpins plans for a new settlement in the E1 area east of Jerusalem that would fragment the West Bank. As a sealed transit corridor for Palestinian vehicles, the bypass will let Israel bar Palestinians from roads in the settlement area while allowing only Israeli vehicles. Israeli ministers called the project a way to apply sovereignty and strengthen control. Opponents call it an apartheid road that will sever the West Bank and isolate East Jerusalem.

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