US Vice President JD Vance says Israeli vote on West Bank annexation an insult
US Vice President JD Vance said that President Donald Trump would oppose Israel’s annexation of the occupied West Bank and that it would not happen, suggesting that the move by Israeli lawmakers in this direction looked like a stupid “political stunt”.
The bill, which would apply Israeli law to the West Bank, a move tantamount to annexing territory Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war, received preliminary approval from Israeli lawmakers on Wednesday.
Asked by reporters about the move, Mr. Vance replied: “Yes, it was strange… If this is a political demonstration, it’s a very stupid thing to do, and I personally consider it an insult.”
Mr Vance spoke after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that moves to annex land where Palestinians want to establish an independent state could jeopardize Trump’s plan to end the Gaza Strip war, which has so far resulted in a tenuous ceasefire.
“The West Bank will not be annexed by Israel. President Trump’s policy is that the West Bank will not be annexed. That will always be our policy,” Mr. Vance said during a visit to Israel to help strengthen the ceasefire.
The opposition’s bid to annex parts of the West Bank surprisingly won a majority in the Israeli parliament in a preliminary vote on Wednesday, but final approval is unlikely.
Ultranationalist members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government have long advocated annexing the West Bank.
Palestinians claim the area is part of a future independent state.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said after Mr Vance’s comments that the government had not decided to bring forward the vote on annexation at this stage to ensure the success of Trump’s multi-stage Gaza Strip plan.
The United States has long been Israel’s most powerful and loyal great power ally, and the Trump administration is particularly close to Israel and wields considerable influence over Israel’s leadership.
Senior US officials, including Rubio, are visiting Israel in a bid to keep alive the fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas after two years of devastating war that has roiled the Middle East.
Mr. Vance told reporters in Tel Aviv that he was “feeling pretty good” about the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip after meeting with Netanyahu.
Repeated gunfire and explosions rocked the agreement, and the two sides traded blame for violations in the first phase, which included the return of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, the handing over of the bodies of some dead hostages, and the partial withdrawal of Israeli troops.
According to Israeli records, after a two-year war that resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people with a cross-border attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023, both sides reiterated their commitment to a ceasefire brokered by the United States.
Gaza health officials say the air and ground war launched by Israel in response has killed more than 68,000 people and reduced much of the small, densely urbanized Gaza Strip to rubble.
The US State Department said Rubio visited Israel to support the implementation of Trump’s 20-point plan and pave the way for possible steps towards reconstruction, stable governance and a Palestinian state.
He was preceded by Mr. Vance, who will meet with Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer on Thursday before his departure.
Separately on Thursday, the Israeli Supreme Court held a hearing on whether the Gaza Strip should be opened to international media and gave the state 30 days to present a new position in light of the new situation under the ceasefire.
Israel has prevented journalists from entering the region since the outbreak of war with a Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The Foreign Press Association, which represents dozens of international news organizations, had asked the court to order the government to open the border.
With AP and DPA
