Israel's Finance Minister Smotrich Plans West Bank Annexation in 2025, Sees Trump's Election as Opportunity

Nov 11, 2024, 03:09 PM

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also serves as a minister in the defense ministry responsible for West Bank settlements, announced during a faction meeting on Monday that he has instructed his department to begin preparations for extending Israeli sovereignty over the occupied West Bank, referred to as Judea and Samaria. Smotrich stated that he hopes 2025 will be the "year of sovereignty in the West Bank" and expressed optimism that the newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump will support this move, calling his election an "opportunity" for annexation. Smotrich, a radical settler known for redesigning Israel's control over the West Bank, emphasized that the time has come to apply full Israeli sovereignty over the area.