NEW YORK, August 20, 2026 (WAFA) — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres today warned of the implications of developments related to the E1 settlement project and called on the Israeli authorities to refrain from taking further steps concerning the project.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during the daily press briefing that developments concerning the E1 area could effectively sever territorial contiguity between the northern and southern parts of the West Bank, threatening the unity and integrity of the occupied Palestinian territory and prospects for implementing the two-state solution.

Guterres called on the Israeli authorities to comply with relevant UN resolutions and the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice on July 19, 2024.

Meanwhile, the UN Human Rights Office in the occupied Palestinian territory expressed its rejection of recent remarks by far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, saying they amounted to calls and incitement to violence and were contrary to international humanitarian law and international human rights law.

The office recalled the binding provisional measures issued by the International Court of Justice in January 2024 concerning the prevention and punishment of direct and public incitement to commit genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

K.T