Tel Aviv Threatens Retaliatory Annexation if Palestine Gains Recognition
Israel warns it will respond to international recognition of Palestine by annexing large parts of the occupied West Bank, including settlements and the Jordan Valley.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has threatened to unilaterally annex West Bank settlements and the Jordan Valley if major international powers, including Britain and France, move forward with recognizing an independent Palestinian state.
According to the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom, Sa’ar warned that any unilateral measures taken against Israel would be met with unilateral actions by Tel Aviv—specifically, the imposition of Israeli sovereignty over large swaths of occupied Palestinian land.
The report noted that Sa’ar’s threat targets countries considering formal recognition of Palestine, vowing that such moves would trigger annexation of settlement blocs and the Jordan Valley, areas long considered by Palestinians as part of their future state.
This comes as French President Emmanuel Macron reportedly works to convene an international conference in New York in mid-June, aimed at advancing global recognition of Palestine.
Diplomatic sources told Israel Hayom that Macron is pushing for June 18 as the date for official announcements by several states, with backing from Saudi Arabia.
The Israeli government has reacted angrily, accusing Macron of duplicity and claiming he had previously assured Tel Aviv he would not proceed with such recognition efforts.
While the United States has reportedly declined to participate in the conference, it has also indicated it will not pressure other countries to avoid attending.
Currently, 149 of the 193 United Nations member states recognize the State of Palestine. Palestinian officials hope to secure additional recognition at the upcoming New York gathering.
The developments follow a landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice on July 20, 2024, which declared Israel’s continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory illegal.
The court affirmed Palestinians’ right to self-determination and called for the evacuation of Israeli settlements.
As of the end of 2024, Palestinian reports estimate that around 770,000 Israeli settlers live in the occupied West Bank, spread across 180 officially sanctioned settlements and 256 unauthorized outposts—138 of which are categorized as pastoral or agricultural.
The United Nations has consistently classified all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory as illegal under international law. The expansion of these settlements, the UN warns, erodes any prospect of a two-state solution and has continued despite repeated international calls for a halt.
Since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023—with full US backing—Israel has also escalated violence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem. According to official Palestinian sources, more than 960 Palestinians have been killed, nearly 7,000 injured, and at least 16,400 arrested by Israeli forces and settlers.
In Gaza, over 176,000 Palestinians have been killed or wounded since the war began, most of them women and children, with more than 14,000 still missing—many believed to be buried under rubble. The war has triggered an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, drawing growing international condemnation.
(PC, AJA)