Barghouti: Trump may support Israel annexing West Bank

US President-elect Donald Trump’s “Deal of the Century” allows Tel Aviv to annex all settlements in the occupied West Bank,  Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative, Mustafa Barghouti, warned.

Commenting on statements by Israeli Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, regarding Tel Aviv’s plans to annex the occupied West Bank in 2025, Barghouti said Israel’s intentions have been clear for a long time, even before the minister’s statement.

He recalled that shortly after taking office, Smotrich asserted that “Israel must fill the West Bank with settlers and settlements so that the Palestinians lose all hope for an independent state; they must either leave, submit completely, or die.”

Barghouti suggested that the timing of Smotrich’s announcement, combined with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s silence, signals a move toward annexation, especially with Trump’s reported view that Israel is too small and requires expansion.

“This is something Trump attempted during his previous administration and may pursue again now. However, such an announcement will come at a cost and does not guarantee that Israel will have complete control over the situation,” he said.

He argued that this ambition is fundamentally flawed, citing the Israeli military’s inability to eradicate the resistance in Gaza, establish effective control, or achieve its objectives including returning the captives despite committing all these massacres and ethnic cleansing there.

“As long as the Palestinian people reject these Israeli actions, any external party that offers concessions to Israel holds no significance,” he stressed.

READ: US envoy-designate to Israel says Trump could back West Bank annexation