JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking support from US President Donald Trump ahead of a September general election to annex West Bank settlements.
Netanyahu will use earlier remarks by US Ambassador David Friedman and Trump's assistant Jason Greenblatt to get the support, the independent Times website reported on Monday, citing officials in the prime minister's office.
"Before the election, something will happen. Trump will repeat Friedman and Greenblatt's statements in his own words. It will be dramatic," a Netanyahu office source told the website. US administrations have never supported annexing settlements.
In June, Friedman said in an interview published in the New York Times under certain circumstances: "I think Israel has the right to retain part of the West Bank, but probably not all of it." Greenblatt later supported this statement and did not oppose it.
Settlement expansion in the West Bank is contrary to international law.