Israeli and American sources said that the date of implementing the plan for parts of the West Bank may be postponed in light of disputes between the ruling partners in Israel, while a UN official warned of the catastrophic impact of the annexation process that sparked international opposition and the Palestinians pledged to resist it.
A day after a US delegation arrived in Israel seeking a joint decision between Washington and Tel Aviv on implementing the plan, sources close to Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz were quoted as saying that next July 1 - which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set out to announce the start of the implementation of the annexation plan - It is not a sacred date.
The sources said that Gantz disclosed this vision during his meeting with the American Middle East envoy Avi Berkowitz and the American ambassador to Tel Aviv David Friedman.
She added that Gantz - who will be Netanyahu's expected replacement at the head of government - assured US officials that President Donald Trump's plan is the best framework for progress in the Middle East peace process, and that it should be pursued with those he described as Israel's strategic partners in the region alongside the Palestinians.
The agreement - which Netanyahu and Gantz reached to form the current coalition government - stipulated a proposal to annex parts of the West Bank to the government, the mini cabinet, or the Knesset after obtaining US approval.
Informed Israeli sources had previously revealed attempts by Washington to reconcile Netanyahu and Gantz regarding the plan to annex parts of the West Bank, in addition to persuading Netanyahu to postpone the implementation of the annexation to next September, in the service of the electoral interests of Trump, who is seeking a second presidential term. In the November elections.
In turn, the Israeli Jerusalem Post quoted US sources as saying that the annexation, which is supposed to include the Jordan Valley and East Jerusalem and central West Bank areas, between Hebron and Bethlehem, will not start on July 1, as Netanyahu previously said.
The plan, which the Trump administration has blessed, is supposed to annex 30% of West Bank land. Recently, a US official said that Washington might support its implementation gradually, while Israeli sources said that Netanyahu might start annexing major settlements in the West Bank.
After consultations in the White House that did not lead to a final decision, the Trump administration sent a delegation to Israel on Sunday to agree on the arrangements for the annexation process, while US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said a few days ago that the decision in that was up to Israel.
A two - state solution
for his part, Israeli Prime Minister said that the US plan for peace in the Middle East -alta Trump presented earlier this year in the presence of Netanyahu ended in practice what he described as a two - state solution Bohm.
In a recorded speech broadcast to the virtual conference of an American organization called "United Christians for Israel", Netanyahu added that Israel's annexation of parts of the West Bank would enhance the chances of achieving peace in the Middle East.
In response to Netanyahu's comments, a member of the Central Committee of the Fatah movement, Hussein al-Sheikh, said that the Israeli annexation plan would eliminate any opportunity for a political settlement.
The sheikh warned that Netanyahu will not find a single Palestinian who will negotiate after the annexation plan, saying that the Israeli occupation will remain rejected by the Palestinian, regional and international consensus.
For his part, Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh renewed his government's rejection of the Israeli annexation plan, and affirmed at the beginning of the weekly session of his government that the Palestinian popular movement in recent days confirms the Palestinian people's unanimity in rejecting this plan.
The Palestinian factions had called yesterday during a meeting in the Gaza Strip for unity and comprehensive resistance, as they agreed on a number of field and political moves to confront the upcoming annexation process.
A catastrophic effect For
its part, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, Monday urged Israel to halt the illegal plan to annex parts of the West Bank.
Bachelet said the implications of this decision could not be expected, warning of what she described as the catastrophic effect of the annexation plan.
She noted that this plan will lead to forced displacement of Palestinians and violation of their rights, as well as threatening the two-state solution and efforts to reach a comprehensive peace.
The UN commissioner warned of the effects it described as devastating for the Palestinians, Israel and the region, which will last for decades if Israel implements the plan.
Bachelet's statements come in the context of previous positions rejecting the process of annexing parts of the West Bank expressed by the United Nations and the European Union, as well as Arab countries, including Jordan, who warned Tel Aviv that the implementation of the plan will have serious repercussions on the relations between the two parties.