Netanyahu say Right-Wing MKs Will Be Asked to Vote Only on Annexation, Not On a Palestinian State At This Time

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – As he prepares to ask the Knesset to vote on a plan for Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained Thursday that MKs will only have to vote on the issue of sovereignty, not on the issue of a Palestinian state, the Jerusalem Post reports.

Under the Israeli coalition government agreement, Netanyahu can bring annexation to the vote from 1 July, provided he has US approval. Earlier this year the Trump administration published a plan for peace that allows not only for extended Israeli sovereignty in parts of the West Bank, but also for a Palestinian state.

Jerusalem Post post reporter Tovah Lazaroff observed Sunday that Netanyahu must keep right wing MKs on board if he is to get their approval for annexation. A number of lawmakers on the right have said they cannot countenance approval of a Palestinian state. Among these are Yamina Party head MK Naftali Bennett, who said he would support a “good” plan presented by Netanyahu, but not one that included Palestinian statehood.

Some MKs have reportedly even questioned whether following the Trump peace plan for annexation is even worth it if it means the establishment of a Palestinian state as well, Lazaroff reported.

It was incumbent on Netanyahu, therefore, to find a way to word the vote such that it will pass without opposition from needed right-wing MKs. According to Lazaroff, Netanyahu solved this problem by saying the vote will be on annexation only at this time. As regards a Palestinian state, Netanyahu told the Makor Rishon newspaper: “I am willing to engage in negotiations [with the Palestinians] on the basis of the Trump plan.”

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