West Bank, Jordan Valley Residents Fear Netanyahu Win is Step to Annexation
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Jordan Valley - London - Asharq Al-Awsat
In the Palestinian village of Ain al-Beida, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's surprise election win has raised fears among residents that their land may be annexed. The 70-year-old right-winger campaigned on building thousands of new settler homes in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, as well as extending Israeli sovereignty into the Jordan Valley. "Of course we are afraid they will annex these lands," said 85-year-old Majed Abu al-Hajj, pondering what restrictions await outside the confines of his home and small garden. Final results from Monday's election are still pending, but Netanyahu's Likud along with its allies are currently three seats short of a majority in Israel's parliament, the Knesset. It remains unclear if the prime minister, who is under criminal indictment on corruption charges, will be able to form a government. Equally uncertain is when he would move to annex the Jordan Valley if he secures a new term. The strategically important region makes up about a third of the West Bank and Palestinians say without it their hopes of a future state are dashed. The roughly 1,600 residents of Ain al-Beida, in the northern West Bank and part of the Jordan Valley, said they suspect Israel will annex their land, even if they don't know so for sure. They said more than half of Ain al-Beida's original land of around 600 hectares is already under the control of Israeli settlers or companies. US President Donald Trump's widely-criticized peace proposals, unveiled in January, gave Israel the green light to annex the Jordan Valley and all settlements into Israel. The plan was immediately rejected by the Palestinians, who accused Trump of blatant pro-Israel bias. The Trump proposal called for a technical committee to finalize the details of annexations. Netanyahu said that committee has already started work. "We know that Netanyahu promised his voters to annex about 40 percent of the West Bank," al-Hajj said. "Nothing is in our hands." Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat told AFP Tuesday there could be "violence and bloodshed" if Israel proceeds with annexation plans. The same day, several Israeli trucks carried tanks down a main street in the Jordan Valley. Despite lacking a parliamentary majority, Netanyahu is expected to be selected by the president to attempt to form an administration after his Likud party won 36 seats, its best-ever performance with him as party leader. Professor Eugene Kontorovich, director of international law at the right-wing Israeli Kohelet Policy Forum, said the election results would embolden Netanyahu to follow through with annexation. "The overwhelming majority of those elected support application of Israeli law to Israeli communities," Kontorovich, who advised the US administration in the drawing up of its peace proposals, said. "The notion he lacks a mandate for this has been dispelled."
from Asharq AL-awsat https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2163866/west-bank-jordan-valley-residents-fear-netanyahu-win-step-annexation
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