Yesterday, President Donald Trump said he would not allow Israel to annex the West Bank, and said he had spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier in the day.
“That’s enough. It’s time to stop now,” he said.
Netanyahu, who attends the United Nations General Assembly and is in the US to meet with Trump, signed this month the controversial West Bank settlement expansion plan.
Trump’s public message comes two days after the US proposed to Arab leaders a 21-point peace plan to end the war in Gaza.
Regional diplomats told CNN that local leaders supported most of Trump’s plans, but created a set of points they wanted to include, including the annexation of the occupied West Bank by Israel.
Saudi Arabia’s Prince Faisal bin Fahan Al Saud, who attended a meeting with Trump, said he believes the president “has a very good understanding of the risks and dangers of annexing the West Bank.” Saudi Arabia says that relations with Israel will not be normalised until it commits to a Palestinian state.
French President Emmanuel Macron also foresaw Trump’s stance, saying the annexation would be a “red line” for the United States and mark the end of Abraham’s agreement.
The United Arab Emirates is the signatories of the agreement, and previously said annexation would be a “red line” “to end the pursuit of regional integration.”
