WASHINGTON (Reuters) - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said his country no longer considered Jewish settlements in the West Bank to be illegal - a "startling surprise" that would pave the way for Israel's annexation of all Palestinian land.
American journalist Richard Silverstein writes in the article that Pompeo offered several justifications for the move taken by the administration of President Donald Trump, including that the issue of settlements is not the prerogative of international law and therefore left to the Israeli judiciary to decide.
The article argues that the United States, by supporting Israel's construction of settlements in the occupied West Bank, has abandoned its four-decade-old stance that the settlements were "against international law."
Exclusion of Palestinians
Silverstein, the founder of the Jewish-Israeli blog Tekon Olam, said that if the Palestinian territories were to be annexed, Israel would, for sure, exclude or deprive four million Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The main premise underlying Pompeo's claims about the law, Silverstein put it, is that the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are not sovereign areas or even occupied territory but Israeli territory, otherwise Israeli courts would have no jurisdiction.
Based on that premise, Israel will soon annex all of Palestine. If that happens, Israel would be a more hated state than it is now on the international stage.
Towards a system of apartheid
Israel is likely to introduce a system similar to the apartheid regime of South Africa by identifying separate areas for blacks. In such a system, it would get rid of the Palestinians by giving them autonomous authority so that they could claim to exercise self-determination.
Silverstein argues that a handful of countries - which he describes as "cacophony" - support the Israeli occupation of Palestine, including the United States. Perhaps this recognition makes the United States a "pariah state" just like Israel.
Such a position would strengthen the boycott movement of Israel to succeed in persuading the international community to withdraw investment and impose sanctions on Israel.
Pompeo's decision has an important political presumption. News reports have reported a chill in the relationship between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since the latter - who recently ran two rounds of elections - failed to win enough seats in parliament to prepare him for a new government.
In conclusion, the article notes that everyone knows that Trump loves only the winners, and that Netanyahu is no longer one of them.