Israel is expanding its “Iron Wall” offensive in the West Bank as it approves plans to separate the northern West Bank from the south. The plan is an accelerated prelude to Israel’s expected annexation of the West Bank.
Lost in the uproar over Donald Trump’s Gaza comments was another bombshell: the White House will soon announce its position on annexation of the West Bank. Signs indicate it will fully support expanding Israeli control over the occupied territory.
Donald Trump’s first administration proposed what it called the “Deal of the Century” which would have redrawn Israel’s borders to include major swaths of the West Bank. As Trump reenters office there are fears the annexation plan is back.
Yechiel Leiter, a hardcore settler leader once involved in Meir Kahane’s fascist Jewish Defense League, will be Israel’s next ambassador to the U.S. He will use his role to advocate for one of his long-time goals: Israeli annexation of the West Bank.
Mouin Rabbani discusses what Donald Trump’s return could mean for the Lebanese ceasefire, normalization efforts in the region, and the prospect of Israeli annexation of the West Bank.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has announced that 2025 will be the year Israel annexes the West Bank. With the Trump administration entering the White House, the stage is set for Israel to finally take total control over the occupied territory.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s plan to annex the West Bank would see over 60% of the territory becoming a part of Israel. But Palestinian experts say it is “already happening.”
Recent settler attacks against the villages bordering the Jordan Valley between Nablus and Ramallah aren’t random. They are part of a historic Israeli policy to annex the Jordan Valley and expel the Palestinian communities that live there.
This week the Israeli government made a dangerous move that makes annexation of the West Bank an even closer reality, analysts say.
Amit Halevi, a member of Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party, has proposed dividing the Al-Aqsa Mosque between Jews and Muslims. Such plans can no longer be disregarded as extremist fantasies but increasingly represent mainstream Israeli politics.