Senior source to ‘Post’: If Israel annexes, it will annex all settlements

Israel has not proposed to extend sovereignty to part of the settlements or to move forward in stages, a source involved in the matter said on Thursday.

The US-Israel mapping committee is still working on outlining all settlements and the Jordan Valley, making up 30% of the West Bank, that would be part of sovereign Israel according to US President Donald Trump’s peace plan.

The source denied media reports that Israel has moved to a phased annexation plan and proposed to only annex Maale Adumim, Ariel and Gush Etzion in the short term.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu originally planned a different kind of phased annexation, immediately after Trump presented his plan in the White House on January 28. Netanyahu’s political spokesman tweeted that there would be a cabinet vote on settlement annexation within days, and sources close to the prime minister briefed journalists that the vote would only be on the settlements, with a later vote on the exact 30% of the West Bank on a later date.

However, the White House pushed back against the idea, seeking one vote on the sovereignty the plan proposed, and soon after the US-Israel mapping committee came into being. Netanyahu’s spokesman deleted the tweet.

US Ambassador to Israel David Freidman is expected to meet with Netanyahu, Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz and Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi to discuss the matter on Sunday.

Netanyahu has said in his public remarks that he wants to move forward with annexation in the coming weeks. Gantz and Ashkenazi have been more circumspect, saying generally positive things about the Trump plan, but emphasizing the importance of maintaining peace with Egypt and Jordan, which has voiced strong opposition to Israel extending its laws to any part of the West Bank.

US officials have repeatedly and publicly said it is Israel’s decision whether to adopt the plan or not, and are seeking a buy-in from Gantz to move forward.

The source with knowledge of US-Israel talks on applying sovereignty said that there is not a lot of distance between Gantz and Netanyahu’s positions, and that both are being deliberative and weighing the cost and benefits of moving forward with the plan.

Having Gantz on board, even though Netanyahu has a majority in favor of annexation without him, would show the plan has broad support, according to Trump administration thinking. Such support would give the move more longevity and make it less likely that presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden could easily reverse it.