Annexation will not happen on July 1

Loutre 29/06/2020

Gantz tells Trump’s envoys: July 1st not a sacred date for annexation
Gantz met Monday with Special Envoy Avi Berkowitz and Ambassador David Friedman, two days before target date for annexation set by Netanyahu
Noa Landau | Jun. 29, 2020 | 11:38 AM - Haaretz.com
▻https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-gantz-tell-trump-s-envoys-july-1st-not-a-sacred-date-for-annexatio

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Alternate Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benny Gantz met on Monday with President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy Avi Berkowitz and U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman to discuss the Trump administration’s peace plan.
According to sources in Gantz’s party, he told them that the target date of July 1st “is not a sacred date.” According to Gantz, before moving forward with annexation, “people must be returned to their jobs and the coronavirus must be dealt with.”
According to sources, Gantz said in the meeting that Trump’s peace plan “is a historic move that constitutes the right and the best framework for promoting peace in the Middle East.” He added that the plan must move forward together with “the strategic partners in the region and the Palestinians, and reach an outline that benefits all sides proportionally, responsibly and reciprocally.”
On Friday, Gantz said that Palestinians will have full rights wherever Israeli law is applied.
“This week I defined several parameters for diplomatic moves made by Israel,” Gantz wrote in a Facebook post. “We will not apply Israeli law in places in which there are many Palestinians or in cases where we would harm their mobility; if there’ll be Palestinian citizens in regions where Israeli law is applied, they will have equal rights.”
“Preliminary work will be done in both diplomatic and security capacities to ensure we will not harm the country’s safety, as well as our peace agreements and strategic assets,” he added.
Overnight Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented on the case for Israeli unilateral annexation of settlements in the West Bank in a speech at a virtual conference of the Christians United for Israel organization.
Speaking about the religious significance of biblical sites in the West Bank, Netanyahu praised Trump for presenting a Middle East plan that allows Israel to annex these territories, which have been under military occupation since 1967.
The prime minister’s speech comes amid discussions between senior Israeli and American officials regarding unilateral annexation of parts of the West Bank. The Trump administration is expected to give Israel a green light to go ahead with annexation, but the scope and timeline has yet to be determined.

#colonialisme_de_peuplement #annexion

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Loutre 30/06/2020

Annexation will not happen on July 1 - US sources
Gantz says fighting coronavirus, unemployment higher priority than peace plan; Netanyahu still talking about sovereignty over all settlements and Jordan Valley.
By LAHAV HARKOV, TOVAH LAZAROFF, GIL HOFFMAN JUNE 29, 2020 22:29
▻https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/gantz-to-berkowitz-coronavirus-more-pressing-than-annexation-633165

Israel will not take steps to extend its sovereignty in the West Bank this week, multiple American sources with knowledge of the matter told The Jerusalem Post in recent days. US Special Envoy for International Negotiations Avi Berkowitz and Scott Leith of the National Security Council are in Israel to hold meetings with senior Israeli officials.
The coalition agreement between Likud and Blue and White allows Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to bring sovereignty moves to a vote on Wednesday, July 1, at the earliest. But plans and US approval of them will not be ready by then.
In a meeting Monday morning, Alternate Prime Minister and Defense Minister Benny Gantz told Berkowitz and Leith he does not see July 1 “as a holy date,” adding that fighting the coronavirus pandemic and bringing down unemployment are higher priorities for him. Gantz reiterated his position at a Blue and White faction meeting.
Netanyahu, however, told Likud MKs in the Knesset he is conducting discrete talks with the American diplomatic team, and “This issue is not dependent on Blue and White. It is not the relevant authority here.”
Berkowitz and Leith, the latter of whom is a member of the US-Israel mapping committee that is determining which parts of the West Bank will come under Israeli civil law, met with Netanyahu on Saturday night and plan to meet with Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi on Tuesday.
Even before the meeting with Gantz, they planned to return to the US without approving specific Israeli action after their meetings for further discussions with Special Adviser to the US President Jared Kushner. US President Donald Trump has not yet weighed in on the matter, as he is currently occupied with domestic issues such as the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing protests across the country, among other concerns. (...)

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