President Trump says he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank.

 

Benjamin Netanyahu. AP.

President Donald Trump says he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. AP. Israeli officials have been hinting that they would annex the territory, leading to Trump's comments. The hints have been in response to many countries recognizing a Palestinian state. Trump has been an ally of Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu but he has been critical of the state of Israel on occasion. Annexation would end the possibility of a two state solution and is considered a red line for many of the Arab states in the region. Unlike Gaza, the West Bank is controlled by the Palestinian Authority, which is considerably more moderate. Israel is still involved in heavy fighting in Gaza. 

My Comment:

I get the feeling that Trump is fairly frustrated with Benjamin Netanyahu. I don't think Trump is happy about threats to annex the West Bank. And he was certainly not happy about the strikes against Hamas in Qatar. And I don't think he likes the invasion of Gaza City.

Trump wants peace and it's pretty clear that Netanyahu does not. Netanyahu instead appears to be having a temper tantrum over the West Bank because a bunch of countries recognized a supposed state of Palestine. I do think he has a point, there is zero reason for Israel to allow a Palestinian state. But man, is the timing bad. 

I'd also have to say that to target the West Bank like this is just crazy. The West Bank is not the problem. And neither is the Palestinian Authority. They have not been causing violence for the most part and are nothing like Hamas. To punish them for the actions of a bunch of other states is just ridiculous. 

Indeed, annexing the West Bank could lead to another front in the Israeli war to open. I am guessing there are a few people that live there that would consider this a red line. And who knows what the Arab states would do? I am guessing, at the very least, they would cut their newly reforged ties with Israel and go back to the bad old days of funding terrorists in the region.  

I am guessing that Trump's warnings will be listened too. Doing this makes little sense for Israel in the first place, but doing and also angering their biggest ally would be insane. I can't imagine that Israel would do something so irrational. But then again, who knows what the Israelis are thinking. They have for a long time just done what they have wanted without any real care as to what anyone else thinks. 

It also makes me think that Trump's further efforts to end the war will probably fail. Just like the war in Ukraine, I can't see Israel giving up the conflict when they are pretty close to wiping out Hamas once and for all. I just don't see what Trump can offer Israel that will make them stop as long as Hamas still exists and holds territory.