Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly dropped the discussion on the West Bank annexation plan from the agenda of a security cabinet meeting scheduled at a later time of the same day, after the United Arab Emirates (UAE) warned that the plan would “cross the red lines”.
West Bank annexation would severely undermine the spirit and vision of the Abraham Accords, says UAE
On Wednesday, September 3, Reuters quoted a statement from the assistant minister for political affairs in the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lana Nusseibeh, in which she warned Israel that the annexation of the occupied West Bank “would constitute a redline” for her country.
The Emirati official stressed that moving forward with the plan “would severely undermine the vision and spirit” of the Abraham Accords, which the Gulf state signed to normalize ties with Israel in 2020. She also emphasized that the implementation of the scheme would “end the pursuit of regional integration.”
Nusseibeh’s statement came hours after Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced that Israel would impose its sovereignty over 82% of the occupied West Bank as per the intended plan.
He also noted that once the plan is implemented, the Palestinian Authority will be kept temporarily to run the affairs of Palestinian citizens, before being replaced – at a later stage – with “regional civilian management alternatives”.
Commenting on Smotrich’s remarks, Nusseibeh cautioned the Israeli government: “Extremists, of any kind, cannot be allowed to dictate the region’s trajectory. Peace requires courage, persistence, and a refusal to let violence define our choices.”
Israeli cabinet to focus on possible recognition of Palestinian State at UN General Assembly instead
While halting the discussions on the annexation plan was linked to the UAE’s warning, security deliberations between Israeli officials behind the scenes indicate that other concerns may have pushed Netanyahu to backtrack.
According to Israeli media, the possible recognition of a Palestinian State by a number of countries during the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, which will open on Tuesday, September 9, is the most heated topic on the table.
In addition, fears of a sudden deterioration in the security situation in the West Bank, are said to have been flagged by Israeli defense and military officials in order to be discussed during the meeting.
Sources told the Israeli newspaper The Jerusalem Post that these fears are attributed to the plummeting economy in the West Bank, and the political uncertainty in the West Asia region, although the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) have weakened the Palestinian resistance in the refugee camps in the northern West Bank.
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