In a joint article published in the French newspaper Libération, the group calls on the EU and its member states to act swiftly to prevent the implementation of the E1 settlement project, which envisages the construction of more than 1,200 housing units near Jerusalem.
Among the signatories are prominent European figures including former French prime minister and foreign minister Dominique de Villepin, former French prime minister Alain Juppé, former Italian prime minister Massimo D'Alema, former Belgian prime minister Yves Leterme, former Swedish prime minister Stefan Löfven, and former European Parliament presidents Josep Borrell and Enrique Barón Crespo.
Concern over E1 project
According to the signatories, the Israeli government is expected to award contracts for the first phase of the E1 project within weeks.
The plan, approved by Israel last year after having been frozen for decades, would further separate East Jerusalem from the rest of the occupied West Bank and, critics argue, make the creation of a viable Palestinian state significantly more difficult.
Israel's judiciary ordered a one-month postponement of the tender process on 27 September to avoid influencing parliamentary elections later this month.
Calls for EU sanctions
The former officials argue that the EU has failed to take meaningful action despite the significance of the project.
While acknowledging that some member states have adopted national measures targeting settlements, they criticise others, particularly Germany and Italy, for allegedly blocking stronger action at the European level.
The group is calling on the European Commission to introduce legislation imposing sanctions on financial institutions and service providers involved in the E1 project and other settlements.
They also want the EU to prohibit commercial transactions involving settlements and to move ahead with proposals to suspend trade-related aspects of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
Push ahead of foreign ministers' meeting
The signatories are urging EU governments to discuss and adopt measures at the next meeting of EU foreign ministers on 12 October.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and settlement construction has continued throughout the period, accelerating significantly in recent years.
More than 500,000 Israelis currently live in settlements in the occupied West Bank alongside approximately three million Palestinians.
Source: ANA-MPA
