Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces annexation plans, starting with the Jordan Valley, Sept. 10, 2019. (Flash90 /Hadas Parush)
“Now is not the time for annexation,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly tells settlement leaders, citing opposition from President Trump.
By World Israel News Staff
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out applying Israeli sovereignty over parts of Judea and Samaria at this time, according to a report Monday morning.
On Sunday, Netanyahu met with settlement leaders in Washington, D.C., a day before the prime minister’s scheduled meeting with President Donald Trump – the fourth such visit to the White House since Trump returned to office in January.
A delegation from the Yesha Council, the umbrella group representing all Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria, organized the emergency meeting with Netanyahu after Trump declared last week that he would work to prevent Israel from annexing Judea and Samaria.
Netanyahu and Trump are expected to discuss the president’s push to end the war in Gaza, with key issues including Israel’s freedom of action against Hamas during a potential ceasefire to dominate the talks.
According to a source cited by the Walla news site, Netanyahu has already decided to shelve plans to apply sovereignty over parts of Judea and Samaria – the second time he has pushed off annexation.
The report claimed Netanyahu told the Yesha Council delegation explicitly that sovereignty is no longer on the table, citing Trump’s opposition.
“Netanyahu told them that this is not the right time to apply sovereignty,” the source said. “You remember the Obama era; we now have a sympathetic president, and we have to navigate a very complex reality.”
The Yesha Council expressed concern after the meeting with Netanyahu, lamenting that the prime minister did not give clear backing for a plan to extend sovereignty over parts of Judea and Samaria.
However, in a statement released by the council after their meeting with Netanyahu, settlement leaders said Netanyahu did vow to “express to President Trump the fact that Judea and Samaria are an inseparable part of sovereign Israel.”
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