Netanyahu administration plans to formally annex the West Bank to Israel
The Benjamin Netanyahu administration is planning to formally annex the occupied West Bank to Israel. The ruling Likud party has sent a letter to parliament in this regard. It has also been signed by 15 MPs. Tel Aviv believes that this is the right time for this step, as the United States stands by Israel. In addition to the brutal attacks on Gaza, the West Bank has also been the target of Israeli aggression for the past one and a half years. Tensions and arrests have increased in the past few days. In the meantime, Tel Aviv has drawn up a new plan for the West Bank.
Benjamin Netanyahu wants to formally annex the West Bank as a sovereign territory of Israel. The letter, calling Israel’s “victory” in Iran a success, said that it would be wrong to allow anything that threatens Israel’s sovereignty to exist. With US President Donald Trump on the sidelines, the letter to parliament said now is the right time to annex the West Bank. It was signed by 15 Likud MPs, including Defense Minister Israel Katz. They plan to make a final decision by July 27.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smoreich said, “This is a strong response to Israel’s enemies. I want to thank the Likud members. I want to promise the prime minister that I will implement his decision the moment he gives me the signal.” Analysts say that annexing the West Bank to Israel means completely closing the path for the Palestinians to form an independent state. If it is implemented, Israeli settlements there will be recognized as permanent and legitimate. The West Bank is still known internationally as an occupied part of Israel.
Meanwhile, several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia and Egypt, have strongly condemned Israel’s plan to annex the West Bank. They allege that Israel’s forcible annexation of Palestinian land violates international law. It should be noted that Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan during the 1967 Six-Day Arab-Israeli War. However, it has never formally annexed the region as its own sovereign territory.
