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Israeli annexation bill delayed until after visit of Trump’s adviser

Minister Bennett postponed a vote to annex Ma’ale Adumim at least until after the visit of Trump’s senior adviser, Jason Greenblatt, to Israel. 

Israeli Education Minister and Chairman of the Jewish Home party Naftali Bennett reportedly agreed on Tuesday to a slight delay in presenting a bill to incorporate the Israeli city of Ma’ale Adumim, located directly east of Jerusalem, into the rest of Israel.

“We will do everything in coordination with the coalition, everything in its [proper] time,” Bennett said, according to Israel’s Channel 10.

Bennett made his remarks shortly after the bill’s sponsors, Members of Knesset Bezalel Smotrich (Jewish Home) and Yoav Kisch (Likud) reportedly rejected a request by coalition head David Bitan to postpone its presentation to the Ministerial Committee for Legislation for at least three months.

Bitan appealed to the MKs ahead of a scheduled meeting of the committee on Tuesday and after a 5-hour meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Jason Greenblatt, President Donald Trump’s adviser on Israel.

Bennett appears to have delayed the vote temporarily to avoid any diplomatic controversy as a result of voting on such a measure coinciding with Greenblatt’s visit to Israel. During a meeting with Trump in Washington, DC a month ago, Netanyahu agreed to establish a joint mechanism with the Trump administration on Israeli construction in Judea and Samaria.

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By: Jonathan Benedek, World Israel News