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Israeli minister promises annexation of West Bank in 2025

2024-11-11 21:10:06, Kosova & Bota CNA

Israel's Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, vowed to annex Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank in 2025, calling Donald Trump's return to power in the United States a "significant possibility."

"The year 2025, with God's help, will be the year of sovereignty in Judea and Samaria," the far-right minister said, using the biblical names for the West Bank.

Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967 and built settlements to cement control of the area. But Israel has never annexed this territory. The Palestinians claim the territory as part of their future state and have repeatedly warned that Israeli settlements there are an obstacle to peace.

Smotrich, who in addition to finance also covers some parts of the work of the Ministry of Defense, said that he has ordered to start preparations for the "establishment of sovereignty" over Israeli settlements.

Speaking at a Parliament session on November 11, he said that "I have instructed the director of settlement affairs in the Ministry of Defense and Civil Administration... to prepare the necessary infrastructure for the establishment of sovereignty."

Smotrich also congratulated the US president-elect, Donald Trump, on his victory in the presidential elections, a victory that, according to him, "also brings an important opportunity for the State of Israel."

"During his first term, Trump led dramatic moves," Smotrich said.

Among them was the recognition of Israel's sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, the relocation of the American Embassy to Jerusalem and the mediation of agreements for the normalization of relations between Israel and several Arab states.

Before the normalization accords, known as the Abraham Accords, the Israeli government had said it would annex large swathes of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, but abandoned this plan after the accords were reached.

"We are on the verge of establishing sovereignty over the settlements in Judea and Samaria. Now is the time to do this," he said.

He also said that he will push the Government to work together with the new US administration on this issue.

Earlier on Monday, new Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Palestinian statehood was not "realistic" after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas reiterated his call for an "independent" state.

Excluding East Jerusalem, 3 million Palestinians live in the West Bank, along with nearly 500,000 Israelis who live in settlements that are considered illegal under international law.