Journalism of Courage
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has said that his country will not consider annexing areas of the West Bank, currently under the control of the Palestinian Authority. According to him, the idea of annexation of the Palestinian Authority territory has not even come up for discussion, “ because we don’t want to control the Palestinians”.
“What can be discussed, but hasn’t yet been decided, is implementing Israeli law on the Israeli communities located there and not under the Palestinian Authority,” Sa’ar told Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera.
The Foreign Minister’s comment comes at a time when several ministers in the Benjamin Netanyahu cabinet have called for the annexation of parts of the West Bank, which has been under Israeli occupation since 1967, in response to the international recognition of Palestinian statehood.
However, the move could effectively strip the Palestinian Authority of all civil and security powers in the territory and deal a blow to a future state of Palestine.
While Israel plans to annex the occupied West Bank, the move has been met with stiff resistance by Arab and many Western countries, who described it as a red line.
Netanyahu has said he won’t make any decisions until he returns from the United States, where he is to address the UN General Assembly on Friday and then meet with Trump in Washington.
In a rare move, the US also seems to be opposed to the idea of an Israeli annexation of the West Bank.
According to Politico, Trump, who has been hosting Arab leaders and presented a 21-point peace plan for Gaza, has reportedly assured them that he would not allow Netanyahu to annex the West Bank.
Two people familiar with the matter told Politico that Trump and his team presented a white paper outlining the administration’s plan to end the war, including the annexation promise and other details such as governance and postwar security.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who met Donald Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, also said that the US President assured him that the Israeli annexation of the West Bank would be a red line for Washington.
According to Macron, any attempt to annex the West Bank would be a red line for France and the US.
“It would be the end of the Abraham Accords, which was one of the success stories from Trump’s first administration. The United Arab Emirates was very clear on it. I think it is a red line for the USA,” he said.
Macron told France 24 that his country had recognized a Palestinian state on the conviction it “is the only way to isolate Hamas,” which has proved itself able to regenerate even after many of its leaders have been killed.
“Total war in Gaza is causing civilian casualties but can’t bring about the end of Hamas,” he said in the interview on Wednesday.
“Factually, it’s a failure.” He said he had been lobbying US President Donald Trump to press Israel again for a ceasefire. “You cannot stop the war if there is no path to peace,” Macron added.
