Abbas vows to cancel agreements with Israel
Mona Kandil
Press TV, Ramallah
Only a week before Israel’s general election, Israeli Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dropped a new campaign bombshell saying if re-elected, he would annex the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank. Netanyahu also said he would move later to annex all Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The pledge has angered the Palestinians. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he will cancel all agreements with Israel. He added that Palestinians have the right to defend their lands and to achieve their goals by all available means.
The United Nations has also warned Netanyahu that his plan to annex the Jordan Valley and settlements in the occupied West Bank would have no “international legal effect".
According to UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, any Israeli decision to impose its laws, jurisdictions and administration in the occupied West Bank would be devastating to regional peace and the very essence of a two-state solution. Meanwhile, regional organizations including Arab league and other states like Turkey have warned against the plan.
Observers say, Netanyahu’s plan reveals a new aspect of the so-called deal of the century. Israel claims the Jordan Valley is considered a security asset because it provides a buffer zone against potential attacks from the east. Such action would swallow up a substantial proportion of the West Bank territory sought by the Palestinians for their state, potentially leaving them with isolated enclaves.
Palestinians say it’s not all about the next Israeli election, because Netanyahu has long been pressing on with his policy of annexing occupied Palestinian territories. And in the case of the Jordan valley Palestinians warn it would mean seizing land that’s vital to any future Palestinian state’s success.
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