Fifth foreign firm pulls out of Israeli cable car project to East Jerusalem

Summary

The Italian engineering consultancy ROPES has withdrawn from a plan to build a cable car from West to East Jerusalem, the fifth foreign company to pull out, according to reports in The Guardian and The Times of Israel. ROPES's CEO said the company has prior commitments in India that prevent it from accepting the contract. In late September, weeks before Israel's 27 October elections, the Jerusalem Development Authority issued a notice of intent to award ROPES a contract without a public tender, after the project had appeared stalled for four years. The planned 1.4km route ends at a compound run by Elad, a far-right settler group. Rights groups say the route will displace Palestinians and reshape the cultural landscape, and that it threatens the seizure of land and property rights from dozens of Palestinian families along its path. Local authorities insist the scheme is proceeding as planned.

Timeline

1. The Guardian

   21 Oct 2026, 04:00 UTCSource ↗

   The Guardian reports that a fifth foreign company has pulled out of the planned 1.4km West to East Jerusalem cable car, while local authorities insist the scheme is proceeding as planned.

2. The Times of Israel

   21 Oct 2026, 20:17 UTCSource ↗

   The Times of Israel reports that the Italian firm ROPES has withdrawn, the fifth company to do so, with its CEO saying prior commitments in India prevent it from accepting the contract amid efforts to revive the long-stalled project.