Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has listed conditions to accept a US back-channel peace plan known as “deal of the century”, in a move seen by analysts as aiming to court voters ahead of Tuesday’s general election.
“DEAL OF THE CENTURY”
In an interview with Israel Hayom newspaper, Netanyahu, the leader of the right-wing Likud Party, said he had not coordinated with Donald Trump about the “deal of the century” but forwarded “three basic conditions.” According to Netanyahu, these conditions are; “No single settler will be uprooted from the West Bank, the West Bank will remain under Israeli control, and Jerusalem will not be divided.”
Commenting on the situation of the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank and the Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, Netanyahu said he refuses the return of the PA to power in Gaza, citing that Israel is benefiting from the Palestinian division.
The PA swiftly condemned and rejected Netanyahu’s remarks, calling them “irresponsible,” according to the official Wafa news agency. Nabil al-Khatib, a lecturer in political science and international relations at Birzeit University in the West Bank, told Anadolu Agency that Netanyahu’s remarks “represent a continuation of the known positions of the Israeli government.” “The deal of the century will not be far from the core of the Israeli position,” he said.
He stressed that the Palestinian position towards the US administration and its plan “must continue to reject the principle of American mediation, and therefore refuses to deal with any US proposals.”
Netanyahu’s Likud Party and Blue and White political alliance led by Benny Gantz are considered the main rivals in Tuesday’s polls to elect members of Knesset (Israel’s parliament).