What does it mean to annex the West Bank and establish Israeli sovereignty over it?

Ramallah- Today, Wednesday, Israel’s Knesset will vote on a draft resolution supporting the imposition of “Israeli sovereignty” on the West Bank, effectively paving the way for its annexation by Israel, after it voted overwhelmingly to create a Palestinian state.

The initiative is led by Knesset members from both the ruling coalition and the opposition, indicating a broad consensus in Israel’s legislative body regarding the rejection of Palestinian sovereignty and the strengthening of Israeli control over the West Bank.

It should be noted that the draft resolution is not considered an effective law, but an expression of position, and it is not binding on the Israeli government, which is the authorized body to make this type of decision.

These movements reflect a political escalation alongside the ongoing on-the-ground escalation through invasions, raids, arrests and military campaigns that have continued since October 7, 2023.

Meaning of terms

According to Palestinian lawyer Salah Musa, there are differences between “sovereignty”, “annexation” and “imposing Israeli law”.

He explains – in a conversation with Al Jazeera Net – that the imposition of Israeli law on West Bank settlers means that they are subject to Israeli civil laws and that they are not under the authority of the military governor and the defense minister, and this violates international law because the settlements are located on occupied land.

He added that “annexation” is always militarily occupied lands, and in the case of Palestine and specifically Area C, “the declaration of annexation is a political decision that must be transformed into a legal decision, and this happens through the legislature, where the Knesset decides to establish Israel’s law on the annexed lands.

He continued that sovereignty would be exercised through legislative and executive instruments and directed the relevant authorities to take necessary measures.

Regarding the fate of Palestinian residents of Area C in the event of annexation and the imposition of sovereignty, he said they have three options:

• Obtaining Israeli citizenship with full rights is a weak option.
• A situation similar to the “permanent residency” status of Palestinians in East Jerusalem, which is also unlikely.
• The third and most likely option is to treat them as Palestinian citizens living on land owned by Israel, while retaining their Palestinian identity and the services provided to them by the Palestinian Authority, but with restrictions on construction.

In 1995, the Oslo II Accords divided the West Bank into ‘A’, which is 21% and is under full Palestinian control, ‘B’, which is 18% and is under Palestinian civilian and Israeli security control, and ‘C’, which is under Israeli control.

A political move

Politically, the political adviser, Ambassador Ahmed Al-Dek, says – with Al Jazeera Net – that the issue of annexing or imposing Israeli sovereignty on the West Bank and the application of Israeli law is “a racist colonial process that has been going on for a long time and has intensified since Netanyahu came to power and further weakened the government in 20”.

He added that what Smotrich and Netanyahu claim is in practice, “they are committing the crime of genocide and ethnic cleansing on the ground in all aspects of the Palestinian presence in Area C, which is more than 60% of the West Bank, and treating it as a strategic depth of settlement.”

He went on to say that Israeli officials talk about the annexation “as if Jerusalem is behind them and that’s where the decision to annex was made, approved in the Knesset, legislated and approved by US President Donald Trump in 2017.”

The political adviser said that the Israeli government is trying to isolate the annexed territories from any Palestinian environment and empty them of their Palestinian inhabitants, thereby changing their character, identity and historical and legal reality as they acquire the character of pure Israel.

The most visible measure they are taking, he said, is flooding the region with settlements and settlements, including changing names from Arabic to Hebrew.

The death of the two-state solution

The political adviser said that imposing Israeli sovereignty and going to the Knesset and enacting the legislation would lead to American recognition, “and it would undermine any possibility of materializing a Palestinian state on the ground and serve as a death certificate for the so-called

As for Palestinian counter-moves, he pointed to diplomatic actions around the world through ambassadors and embassies regarding statements by ministers and members of the Knesset that prevented the creation of a Palestinian state and communication with decision-makers around the world, “a clear violation of international law and a flagrant disregard for the resolution. International legitimacy and the rights of the Palestinian people.” about as another form of genocide and war of displacement in the Gaza Strip”.

The Palestinian emphasized that the Palestinian movement continues to comply with the decision of the International Court of Justice, which requires the withdrawal of Israel from the occupied territories and the trial of Israeli war criminals in the process of the International Criminal Court.

Delete the state

For his part, political analyst and director of the Center for Jerusalem Studies Ahmed Rafiq Awad says that the annexation of the West Bank and the application of Israeli law target the Palestinian land, not the population, “which means that a Palestinian will not receive Israeli citizenship, in a situation similar to the legal status of the residents of Jerusalem as guests and strangers.”

In an interview with Al Jazeera Net, Awad noted that Palestinians have been reduced to second- or third-class treatment by being subject to a different law than Israeli law, which applies to settlers without “citizenship or political rights.”

He said the application of Israeli law to the land, not the population, “aims to expel Palestinians and treat them in a way that allows Israel to control them and their destiny, hinder their development, create the conditions for their movement and prevent the creation of a Palestinian state, while putting the future of the Palestinian Authority at stake.”

In the case of a real annexation of West Bank land, “there will be no Palestinian Authority, which will lead to its termination and dismantling, or it will be left to perform an administrative and official role without a political character, as the Palestinians want,” says a Palestinian analyst.