Overview

• At a Jerusalem press conference, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said maps are being prepared to apply Israeli sovereignty to most of the West Bank while excluding six major Palestinian cities.
• Smotrich said he seeks maximum territory with a minimal Palestinian population under Israeli rule and urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to adopt the plan.
• Netanyahu has not committed to annexation, and any formal move would likely require a lengthy legislative process according to reporting.
• Reuters previously reported that Israel has weighed annexation in response to planned recognitions of Palestinian statehood by France, Britain, Australia and Canada at the U.N. General Assembly in late September.
• A UAE official warned annexation would be a red line and Palestinian officials condemned the idea, while separate reports said Israeli officials discussed the plan with U.S. counterparts and recent settlement approvals, including the E1 project in August, advanced territorial changes.