Israeli far-right minister pushes for annexation of West Bank territory

During a meeting with his faction in the Israeli parliament on November 11, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he had instructed Israeli agencies overseeing settlements in the West Bank to begin preparing the infrastructure needed for the expansion of sovereignty in 2025, according to Reuters.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich

Mr Smotrich, a West Bank settler, said he would push his government to contact the administration of US President-elect Donald Trump to recognise the expansion of sovereignty.

Mr. Smotrich is the leader of the far-right Religious Nationalist-Zionist party. In addition to his role as finance minister, he also has a supervisory role in the Ministry of Defense for settlers, as part of a coalition agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said the government's position on the issue of expanding sovereignty in the West Bank had not been finalized. "The last time we discussed this was during President Trump's first term. If it is still relevant, it will be discussed again with our friends in Washington," Saar said.

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The foreign minister also noted that Israel considers areas in the West Bank such as Judea or Samaria to be disputed territory, not occupied territory.

The West Bank is one of the areas Israel controlled in the 1967 Six-Day War, but is also the territory Palestinians see as the territory of a future state with international support.

Most major powers consider Israel’s settlements in the West Bank illegal. The United States has long supported a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians and has called on Israel not to expand settlements. During Trump’s first term, the United States and Israel discussed plans to annex parts of the West Bank, according to Reuters.

Responding to Minister Smotrich's views, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said that such statements confirm Tel Aviv's intention to annex the West Bank, in defiance of international law.

Mr. Rudeineh declared that the Israeli government will bear full responsibility for the consequences of these dangerous policies and the US is also responsible for continuing to support Tel Aviv.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bo-truong-cuc-huu-israel-thuc-day-sap-nhap-lanh-tho-tai-bo-tay-185241112124347469.htm