JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israel’s far-right finance minister said on Wednesday that maps were being drawn up for annexing territory in the occupied West Bank, land the Palestinians seek for a state, although it was unclear if he had Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s support.
At a press conference in Jerusalem, Bezalel Smotrich stood before a map that suggested the possible annexation of most of the West Bank with the exception of six large Palestinian cities, including Ramallah and Nablus.
Smotrich said he wanted “maximum territory and minimum (Palestinian) population” to be brought under Israeli sovereignty, urging Netanyahu to accept his plan that is being drawn up by a department under Smotrich’s supervision in the Defence Ministry.
“The time has come to apply Israeli sovereignty to Judea and Samaria, to remove once and for all from the agenda the idea of dividing our tiny land and establishing a terror state in its centre,” he said, using biblical names widely used in Israel and the administrative name used by the state to describe the area.
“Who can defend a state with such small strategic depth? And this is why the goal of the sovereignty is to remove, once and for all, a Palestinian state from the agenda. And this is done when applying (sovereignty) to all of the territory, other than Arab population centres. I have no interest in letting them enjoy what the state of Israel has to offer,” he said.
Smotrich, a settler leader, has long called for annexation of the West Bank, which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war and which is among territories the Palestinians seek for a future independent state.
Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond on Wednesday to a request for comment on the prime minister’s position on the matter.
However, the prospect of any concrete steps by the Netanyahu government, which would likely entail a lengthy legislative process, is unclear.
‘RED LINE’
Any step toward annexation would likely draw widespread condemnation from Arab and Western countries. It is unclear where U.S. President Donald Trump stands on the matter.
Speaking after Smotrich made his remarks, an official from the United Arab Emirates said Israeli annexation of the West Bank would be a “red line” for the UAE, which established formal ties with Israel in 2020 under U.S.-brokered accords.
A spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Monday that “any annexation or settlement activity by Israel is illegitimate, condemned, and unacceptable”.
Abdel Hakim Hanini, an official of the Palestinian militant group Hamas which is a rival of Abbas’ Fatah, said annexing the West Bank would not bring Israel the security it seeks and instead “lead to further resistance and confrontation”.
Israel, which is facing mounting international criticism over the war in Gaza, has been angered by pledges by France, Britain, Australia and Canada to formally recognise a Palestinian state during the U.N. General Assembly in September.
Reuters reported on Sunday that Israel was considering annexing the West Bank as a possible response to those pledges.
The United Nations’ highest court said in 2024 that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and its settlements there were illegal and should end as soon as possible.
Israel says the territories are not occupied in legal terms because they are disputed.
(Reporting by Dedi Hayun, additional reporting by Nidal al-Mugrabi in Cairo and Ali Sawafta in RamallahEditing by Gareth Jones)
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