Nearly 450 former EU ministers, ambassadors and senior officials have called on member states and EU institutions to take action deterring Israel from constructing a controversial Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank which, say critics, would separate East Jerusalem from the main Palestinian population centres.
The signatories have called on member states to impose targeted sanctions on all individuals and entities engaged in illegal settlement activity in the West Bank.
Those targeted could include politicians, settler leaders, Israeli land and local government authorities, planners, lawyers, architects, engineers, developers, contractors, banks and other financial institutions, according to a statement.
These sanctions should take the form of visa bans and prohibitions on doing business in the EU, said the statement.
The new settlement block, known as EI, would "bisect the West Bank in two and wreck any prospects of a two state solution," said the statement.
"To this end the Israeli government intends to publish on 1st June an initial tender for construction in the E1 area of 3401 residential units to provide housing for up to 15,000 illegal settlers.
"This E1 tender is proceeding despite persistent efforts by the EU and like-minded countries over many years to engage Israel in a critical dialogue to prevent it from illegally acquiring Palestinian land by force.
"The EU and its Member States must act now - including at the Foreign Affairs Council of 11th May - to oppose, together with partners, Israeli illegal settlement actions notably those in the E1 area."
The signatories include a range of former EU ambassadors, diplomats, European officials, MEPs and political figures from across the EU, including the former Belgian prime minister Guy Verhofstadt.
