Attorney general pushes E1 settlement tender for 1,234 homes past election day

Israel's attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara, on Sunday ordered a one-month delay to the deadline for bids in a state tender to build 1,234 housing units in E1, the area between Jerusalem and the settlement of Ma'ale Adumim. The Times of Israel reported that the move places the deadline after the national election set for October 27, and that her office said the aim was to reduce the concern that the tender could serve as election propaganda.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who backs the E1 project, reacted sharply. According to Ynet, he said the attorney general was working on behalf of Eisenkot and interfering in the campaign, and he appealed to Solberg, chair of the elections committee, to make sure she was not helping the left keep the right from forming a government. Separately, the mayor of Ma'ale Adumim has filed a petition against the instruction at the High Court of Justice, journalist Amit Segal reported on his Telegram channel.

What the attorney general decided

In Israel, the attorney general serves as the government's chief legal adviser. In Hebrew the post is often shortened to the acronym "yoamash". The attorney general's legal opinions guide how ministries act, and during election campaigns the office typically weighs whether government steps could give an advantage to parties in power.

The decision as described by The Times of Israel is narrow in form: it moves the date by which contractors must submit bids, pushing it by a month so that it falls after polling day. The attorney general's office did not cancel the tender, according to that account. The reports differ in how they characterise the step. Haaretz described it as a delay to a construction tender and headlined it as a freeze, while The Jerusalem Post framed it as an opinion delaying approval of new homes. The Times of Israel spoke of a postponement of the bidding deadline.

What E1 is

E1 is a tract of land in the West Bank lying between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim, a large Israeli settlement to the city's east. Plans to build there have been discussed for years and have drawn repeated objections abroad. Haaretz called the project internationally criticised, and The Times of Israel called it controversial. Critics of building in E1 have long argued that it would affect the territorial link between Palestinian areas north and south of Jerusalem, which is why the plan features in debates about a possible two-state arrangement.

Smotrich, who leads a far-right party and holds the finance portfolio, has been among the most prominent supporters of settlement expansion in the West Bank, and The Times of Israel described him as a major proponent of E1. That outlet reported that he demanded the attorney general withdraw her instruction.

The political dispute

Smotrich's reference to Eisenkot points to Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff who is now an opposition politician. By linking the attorney general to him, Smotrich was accusing her of favouring one side in the race. His appeal to Solberg was directed at the head of the Central Elections Committee, the body that oversees the conduct of the vote and rules on campaign disputes.

Baharav-Miara has been in a long-running conflict with members of the current government, and ministers have previously accused her of acting against them politically. The E1 decision adds a further point of friction weeks before voters go to the polls.

The petition to the High Court

The High Court of Justice, known in Hebrew by the acronym Bagatz, is the Supreme Court sitting to hear petitions against state authorities. According to Amit Segal, the petitioner is the mayor of Ma'ale Adumim, who argued that the policy decision to move ahead with the tender had been made many months before the election, and that stopping it at this stage is itself the political intervention. The Jerusalem Post also reported that Ma'ale Adumim is challenging the attorney general's opinion.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports seen names the mayor of Ma'ale Adumim or gives the full text of the petition. They do not say when the High Court might hear it, or whether the court has asked the state for a response. The reports do not set out what new bid deadline the attorney general specified beyond the one-month extension, and they do not say whether the government intends to contest her instruction. It is also not stated whether the elections committee chair has responded to Smotrich's appeal.