‘No one takes more care of settlements than me,’ boasts Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted on Sunday that, “There is no one who takes more care of the settlement enterprise than me and the Likud government.” He said that his party will continue to take care of it wisely, reported Israel’s Ynet News.

Netanyahu made his comments during his weekly cabinet meeting. He was discussing a temporary freeze on settlement plans until after his meeting with US President Donald Trump which, according to Netanyahu’s office, might take place in February. In this context, the cabinet agreed unanimously to put on hold a bill introduced by Education Minister Naftali Bennett, the Jewish Home leader, to annex the illegal Israeli settlement of Ma’ale Adumim.

According to the Times of Israel, a local TV channel reported Netanyahu telling his ministers that his “vision” is that all of the settlements in the occupied West Bank would be under Israeli sovereignty in any future agreement. This, said the newspaper, convinced his ministers, including Bennett, to postpone annexation plans.

The prime minister told ministers that the Trump administration had asked him to cooperate on any new measures regarding settlements, claimed Israeli news website Walla. He explained that the US administration told him to avoid any “surprise” announcements of unilateral measures.