Israeli ministers from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party have called for the West Bank to be annexed immediately.
A group of fourteen Israeli ministers and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana signed a joint letter demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately annex the occupied territory. They argue that the creation of a Palestinian state in the area would pose an “existential threat” to Israel and its settlement policy.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that the Settlement Administration in the area is ready to follow the order “immediately”.
Arab countries have denounced Israeli calls for the annexation of the occupied West Bank as a violation of international law.
RT reports: The letter released on Wednesday stated, adding that West Jerusalem should seize the moment following the weakening of Iran and its allies in the region in recent conflicts with Israel.
“The October 7 massacre proved that the doctrine of settlement blocs and the establishment of a Palestinian state in the remaining territory is an existential danger to Israel. It’s time for sovereignty,” the ministers wrote, referring to the 2023 attack by the Gaza-based Hamas militant organization, which led to the latest conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who is not a member of Likud, praised the initiative and said the Israeli Settlement Administration in the West Bank would be ready to follow a government order and establish Israeli control over the West Bank at any moment.
“On the day he [Netanyahu] gives the order, the Settlement Administration under my leadership is ready… to implement the application of sovereignty immediately,” the minister, who also holds a position within the Defense Ministry on issues related to the West Bank, said.
The authors of the petition also argued that it is the right moment for the move because of the “strategic partnership, backing and support of the US and President Donald Trump.” The development came ahead of Netanyahu’s meeting with Trump scheduled for next week. They are expected to discuss a potential Gaza ceasefire and a hostage deal with Hamas.
During his first presidential term, Trump moved the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and recognized Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, sparking international condemnation.
Before the release of the letter, Justice Minister Yariv Levin made a similar call, drawing condemnation from Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Riyadh called it a “violation of legitimate international resolutions,” and Cairo urged the international community to intervene.
Israel seized the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and has been actively building settlements there – which is widely regarded as illegal by the international community. West Jerusalem moved closer to annexation in 2020 but dropped the idea in exchange for normalization of relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
