Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi responded to the pressure exerted on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by settlers in the West Bank during a Knesset session on Wednesday.
Ashkenazi stated that the “annexation is off the agenda,” and “no one is talking about it, justifiably. Not the Americans, either at the moment.”
Ashkenazi, who held talks with his US counterpart Mike Pompeo two weeks ago, said: “I can’t say for sure that it is off the agenda. If it comes back, without harming existing agreements and in dialogue with our neighbors, you will hear our stance again.”
Lamwakers Shlomo Qarai and Matan Kahan have carried out a study at the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in participation with several settlement leaders.
In the study, they objected to the procrastination in implementing Israel’s plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank and the Jordan Valley. According to them, Netanyahu broke his promise of annexation after coming under pressure.
Qarai stated that the Palestinians control the lands in zone C in the West Bank, and in case the government didn’t act to expel them, then the golden opportunity will be lost and upcoming generations will suffer from its repercussions.
Zvi Hauser, the head of the committee, considered these lands as the foundation of the Jewish civilization in history.
Today, Israel seems to turn a blind eye to avoid seeing how Palestinians have full control over them, he said.
