Israel threatens to annex parts of the West Bank

Israel has threatened to annex parts of the occupied West Bank if the Palestinians insisted on joining 15 UN agencies and international treaties.

Israeli media quoted Tourism Minister Uzi Landau as saying: “The new Palestinian bid to join the United Nations agencies and international treaties may prompt Israel to annex more territory in the West Bank.”

“If they are threatening to go to the United Nations organisations, they have to know a simple fact: they will pay a heavy price.”

Landau, a member of the right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu Party, threatened that “a possible action that Israel can take is to apply its sovereignty over areas which will clearly be part of the State of Israel in any future solution” in reference to major settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank which Israel wants to keep. Landau pointed out that Israel could harm the Palestinians economically by blocking financial aid.

On Saturday Israel refused to release the fourth and final group of Palestinian prisoners in accordance with the agreement signed between the two sides under US auspices.