Israel may annex Judea and Samaria after UN ‘Palestine’ vote

Finance Minister Smotrich labeled the UN vote a “diplomatic attack on Israel” and called for immediate Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.

By World Israel News Staff

Israeli ministers are urging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to officially annex Judea and Samaria after a United Nations declaration Saturday recognizing a Palestinian state.

“Israel must apply sovereignty [to Judea and Samaria] as a preventive measure against the reckless attempt to establish a terror state in the heart of our land,” Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich wrote on X, calling the UN vote “a diplomatic attack on Israel.”

Justice Minister Yariv Levin also said annexation of the territory was critical for preventing the formation of a Palestinian state.

“It is time to apply sovereignty to Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley,” Levin wrote on X.

He condemned the UN decision as a “reward for terrorism” and insisted annexation would be “the appropriate Zionist response.”

According to Hebrew-language media reports, Netanyahu has been seriously weighing the move. However, the prime minister was recently deterred by a warning from the United Arab Emirates that annexation would prompt the UAE to withdraw from the Abraham Accords.

The debate comes as U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to arrive in Israel on Sunday. Rubio warned European states considering recognition of a Palestinian state that “there is going to be a counter reaction,” which some speculate could take the form of Israeli annexation.

Reports also suggest the Trump administration has given Israel a green light for partial annexation, specifically in the Jordan Valley.

Unnamed senior Israeli officials told Axios that “Rubio has signaled in private meetings that he doesn’t oppose [Judea and Samaria] annexations, and the Trump administration won’t stand in the way.”

A White House official, however, declined to confirm or deny those claims, telling Axios: The Trump administration obviously engages in a variety of policy discussions related to the Middle East. We do not comment on internal meetings that may or may not have occurred.”