The Israeli Parliament (Knesset) approved this Wednesday, in a preliminary reading with 25 votes in favor and 24 against, a bill that seeks to formally annex the occupied Palestinian territory of the West Bank.
The proposal, promoted by Avio Maoz, leader of the ultranationalist Noam party, proposes that Israel “apply its sovereignty and laws to the settlement areas in Judea and Samaria.”
It is a biblical name with which the Israeli Government refers to the West Bank, said a note from EFE.
To become law, The text must pass three additional votes in the Knesset.
During the session, Maoz argued that “the Lord gave the people of Israel the Land of Israel,” vindicating the concept of “Greater Israel” that eliminates Palestinian borders.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich celebrated the approval as “the moment to apply full sovereignty over the inheritance of our ancestors.”
For his part, Itamar Ben Gvir, Minister of National Security, wrote in X: “The time for sovereignty has come now!”
Both ministers had asked the prime minister in September Benjamin Netanyahu advance annexation as a response to the recognition of the Palestinian State by more than a dozen countries.
Vance’s visit to Israel
The vote coincided with the visit of the American vice president JD Vance to Israelwho met with Netanyahu to oversee the implementation of the ceasefire plan in Gaza.
Vance reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to disarming Hamas and rebuilding the Gaza Strip, stressing that the goal is to “improve lives in Gaza without Hamas once again posing a threat to Israel.”
Since the Oslo Accords, Israel maintains civil and military control over 60% of the West Bank territory (Area C), where there are hundreds of checkpoints and a restrictive permit system that limits Palestinian mobility, especially towards Jerusalem.
