Gantz signals support for unilateral annexation if Palestinians ‘say no forever’

Defense minister lays out his conditions for backing the extension of Israeli sovereignty over West Bank lands, acknowledges move could be met with violence

By Alexander Fulbright, TOI 23/6/20 , 7:46 pm

Defense Minister Benny Gantz at a weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, on June 7, 2020. (Marc Israel Sellem/Pool)

Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Tuesday signaled he could back unilateral annexation of West Bank lands, citing persistent refusals by the Palestinians to reach a deal with Israel, while reiterating his demand that the move not endanger Israel’s existing peace agreements.

“We won’t continue to wait for the Palestinians. If they say no forever to everything, then we’ll be forced to move forward without them,” Gantz said in a briefing to military reporters.

However, he didn’t specify a date for when he would support a unilateral move or whether he would back starting the annexation process next week, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly pledged to do.

Under the coalition deal between Netanyahu and Gantz, the premier can begin on July 1 moving forward with annexing the roughly 30 percent of the West Bank slated for Israel under US President Donald Trump’s peace proposal. The proposal, which the Palestinian Authority has rejected out of hand, envisions a Palestinian state in the rest of the territory.

Gantz stressed his commitment to ensure Israel “remains safe, Jewish and Democratic, and economically prosperous,” which he said Trump’s peace plan could best ensure.

“We need to not only manage the conflict but also shape it. We’ll act to minimize as much as possible the risk of the State of Israel as a binational state, while safeguarding the security of the state, with close deliberation with the US, countries of the world — and the Palestinians, as much as they want to be a part of the discourse,” he said.

With this, Gantz laid out his conditions for annexation, vowing there would be an “organized process” in coordination with the Israel Defense Forces and other security services.

“We won’t take Palestinians into our territory, we won’t harm human rights or the right of movement, we’ll work in coordination with regional countries and we’re in contact with them, we won’t endanger the peace agreements,” he said.

Peace Now, a settlement watchdog group opposed to annexation, slammed Gantz in response to his comments.

“After he retreated from his promise to replace Netanyahu, Gantz has turned into his official collaborator. The man who promised to bring peace has volunteered for a project to set alight the Middle East,” it said in a statement.

Gantz, a former IDF chief of staff, also said during the briefing that he’s reviewed with the military potential responses to annexation, which the IDF has been preparing for, and acknowledged the move could be met with violence by Palestinians in the West Bank.

“There is a security challenge in the Judea and Samaria area, and it may be a greater challenge as a result of applying the law if and when that happens,” he said, using the biblical names for the West Bank.

Israel’s security forces have been mostly left in the dark about Netanyahu’s annexation plans, hampering their ability to plan accordingly. A television report over the weekend, however, said security officials this week will be shown maps of areas the prime minister is seeking to annex.

According to various Israeli reports, the proposals floated by Netanyahu range from only annexing a small part of the West Bank in a largely symbolic move to extending sovereignty over all settlements and the Jordan Valley.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.