Three parliamentary elections and 17 months of transitional solutions took place before Israel succeeded in forming a new government. Benjamin Netanyahu remains as prime minister and Israel weighs the future of the West Bank. What is going to happen is still obscured even though today's message has the potential to transform Israel, Palestine and the rest of the Middle East.
In practice, the annexation issue is about completely different things: a way of uniting voters, a hired prime minister and a desperate election promise to be fulfilled. The question is if anyone even wants an annex? But in order not to lose face, Benjamin Netanyahu has to make a statement about what happens to the over 20 percent of the West Bank he wants to take.
Quiet from the White HouseDonald Trump has previously given green light to annex the West Bank, but now it is quiet from the White House. Palestinians raise a warning and the UN has announced that implementation could be a serious violation of international law. An annexation means the end of the dream of a two-state solution.
When the deadline expires, July 1, it seems to be a starting point for a discussion rather than a clear message from the Prime Minister. The balance that weighs the West Bank's future does not seem to be the force message Netanyahu had hoped for.