‘Akin to the Balfour Declaration’ – Conservative Political Action Conference, America’s largest annual gathering of political conservatives, votes to endorse Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.
By World Israel News Staff
American conservative activists voted this week to endorse the application of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, amid speculation the Netanyahu government may move forward with a long-shelved plan to place Israeli towns in the disputed area under Israeli law.
On Wednesday night, the American Conservative Union kicked off its annual gathering, the Conservative Political Action Conference, in Oxon Hill, Maryland, outside of Washington D.C.
According to multiple reports in the Israeli media Thursday night, during the conference, activists voted to back a resolution calling for the extension of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.
The resolution was drafted following talks between senior CPAC officials and settlement enterprise leaders, including Israel Ganz, mayor of the Binyamin Regional Council and chairman of the Yesha Council, the umbrella group representing Israeli municipalities in Judea and Samaria, Israel National News reported.
The Yesha Council was represented at the conference by the organization’s CEO, Omer Rahamim.
The “CPAC resolution,” Rahamim told The Jerusalem Post, “carries considerable weight with respect to American support for the extension of Israeli sovereignty to Judea and Samaria.”
The Israeli government also sent an envoy to the conference, with Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli (Likud) attending.
On Thursday, former Deputy National Security Advisor K.T. McFarland read the text of the CPAC resolution.
“We believe all these areas are integral parts of Israel, and the United States of America and her allies should recognize Israeli sovereignty over these lands,” the resolution states regarding Judea and Samaria.
In response, Ganz hailed the resolution as a second “Balfour Declaration,” referring to the 1917 letter by British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour, later adopted by the British government as its official policy, backing the formation of a Jewish national homeland in the historic Land of Israel.
“Your declaration is akin to the Balfour Declaration,” Ganz said. “You are granting political validity to biblical values and to justice. This is a tremendous blessing for Israel, the U.S, and the entire free world.”
“The extension of sovereignty will launch a new era based on the historic truth that the Land of Israel belongs to the Jewish people and the Jewish state. These days are proof of the depth of the partnership between our countries, both in the processes currently underway, and in the promise for Israel’s hold on Judea and Samaria. The declaration today clarifies the importance of changing the security reality in all the arenas – the north, the south and in Judea and Samaria, to ensure the security of the State of Israel.”
