Ariel and Ma’ale Adumim don’t require much mapping, though Etzion Bloc is more complex, and Jerusalem thinks drawing out process may help curb friction with Jordan
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will initially announce the annexation of three West Bank blocs, but not the Jordan Valley or other settlement areas, according to top Israeli officials speaking on condition of anonymity.
Netanyahu has repeatedly promised to declare annexation over all of Israel’s West Bank settlements and the Jordan Valley from the July 1 date permitted by his coalition deal with Alternate PM and Defense Minister Benny Gantz, subject to American approval. But earlier this week, he told settler leaders the non-settlement areas might have to wait. Well-placed sources told The Times of Israel last week that the joint mapping committee tasked with delineating the contours of the annexation move still had weeks if not months of work, and the IDF has not been told precisely what Netanyahu has in mind.
According to the Israeli officials, who spoke to Zman Yisrael, the Hebrew sister site of The Times of Israel, in a story published early Wednesday, Netanyahu will delay most annexation and only focus on the blocs of Ma’ale Adumim, Ariel and Gush Etzion, home to large settler populations.
There is thought to be relative consensus, domestically and in Washington, around Jerusalem holding onto the three areas, even in the case of a peace deal with the Palestinians based on the 1967 lines and land swaps, they noted.
The Ariel and Ma’ale Adumin blocs are also seen as relatively well-defined areas that would not require much mapping work, though the Etzion bloc is more complex.
The Etzion and Ma’ale Adumim blocs are directly to the south and east of Jerusalem, respectively. Ariel is a large settlement deep in the northern West Bank, but is linked to suburbs northeast of Tel Aviv via a string of smaller settlements and access roads.
The officials said it is thought that initially focusing on the blocs would avoid some friction with Jordan, which the US is said to be concerned about.
Palestinian sources reportedly said this week that Jordan does not want to take concrete steps unless or until annexation is officially declared. But they said the kingdom has told the Palestinians that King Abdullah II “will not go silently through the annexation process.” Among the possible steps it might take are canceling its peace treaty with Israel.
According to the Israeli officials, the plan for limited annexation would also be accepted by Netanyahu’s coalition partner, Gantz’s Blue and White party, as well as the settler leaders who have expressed strident opposition to US President Donald Trump’s plan, which envisions a Palestinian political entity on the 70 percent of the West Bank not to be annexed by Israel.
The officials said that Netanyahu will announce the annexation of the three areas as merely a first step and a move that can be made unilaterally given the political circumstances.
Source: THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
