Jordan Valley
Blue and White leader Benny Gantz’s pledge to annex the Jordan Valley is a bluff, says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Likud Party campaign launch ahead of March 2 elections.
Ya’alon, who now is No. 3 in Blue and White, told JNS that “the Jordan Valley is the eastern border of the State of Israel forever,” and that this has always been Blue and White’s platform and belief.
“He understands what needs to be done to get the Israelis and the Palestinians closer together,” said King Abdullah II, although he has expressed concern about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pledge to annex the Jordan Valley.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had announced in September that he planned to establish sovereignty in the Jordan Valley if his Likud Party would win the elections.
Israeli farmland set to be handed back to Jordan
Following Amman’s refusal to extend a lease included in the Israel-Jordan peace treaty, Israel may soon have to return 247 acres of agricultural land to the Hashemite Kingdom.
His announcement drew the expected condemnations from the left; on the right, some criticized the Israeli prime minister for waiting until now to implement this move.
OIC calls to ‘hold Israel accountable’ over Netanyahu Jordan Valley annexation vow
The foreign minister of Saudi Arabia said “the kingdom is very clear in condemning and rejecting the Israeli prime minister’s statement, considering it and its resulting consequences null and void.”
At the last weekly Cabinet meeting before national elections, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his pledge to annex the Jordan Valley, noting that the release of the Trump administration’s Mideast peace plan is imminent.
Israeli prime minister wants “to turn the land of Palestine, the blood of the Palestinian people and the holy places into issues of the [Israeli] election,” says former Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal.
Jordan Valley council head hails sovereignty announcement
“It’s impossible to have a Palestinian state without the Jordan Valley,” says chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
Despite the fact that many Israelis view retaining the Jordan Valley as a consensus issue, the prime minister was criticized from the right and left over the timing of the move, right ahead of the Sept. 17 elections.
The Arab League, Palestinian Authority, Turkey, Jordan and Saudi Arabia blast Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pledge to annex the Jordan Valley, calling it “illegal,” a “serious escalation.”
