Against the backdrop of a closed-door cabinet discussion on possible sovereignty moves beyond the Green Line, settlement leaders in the West Bank are pressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to adopt the broadest possible plan—one that would cover all territories without Palestinian population centers.
“Our understanding is that he’s not there yet, but that’s no reason to stop,” said a settlement leader. “We can bring him there, especially with Europe moving toward recognizing a Palestinian state. There’s a consensus in Israel that this must be prevented.”
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: Gonzalo Fuentes/ AFP , Shalev Shalom, Menahem Kahana/ Reuters, Oliver Contreras)
Settlement leaders presented Netanyahu with a proposal to apply sovereignty across areas where Palestinians do not live, regardless of whether those areas are classified as A, B or C. In their view, such a move would block the creation of a Palestinian state while avoiding the annexation of large Palestinian populations, effectively altering the map with minimal demographic consequences.
Netanyahu has yet to decide. He is weighing Israeli public opinion, as well as the international response—particularly from the United States. For now, he is waiting to see whether French President Emmanuel Macron will follow through on his stated intention to recognize a Palestinian state at next month’s U.N. General Assembly, along with other European leaders. Netanyahu is expected to adjust his position accordingly.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and other right-wing figures are pressing Netanyahu to move first rather than respond to European recognition efforts, effectively “killing” the two-state idea. At a recent ceremony approving the long-delayed E1 construction plan near Ma’ale Adumim, Smotrich declared: “By September, there will be nothing left for Europe to recognize.”
Settlement leaders fear Netanyahu could settle for a limited sovereignty move—such as annexing Ma’ale Adumim or the Jordan Valley—which could be presented to Washington as securing Israel’s eastern border in the wake of the October 7 Hamas massacre. But they warn that such a step would mean “giving up everything else and leaving the Palestinian dream of statehood alive.”
For two years, Smotrich and his allies have been quietly preparing the ground. They established a new Settlements Administration within the Defense Ministry, siphoning powers from the IDF’s Civil Administration and placing them under civilian political control. This body now oversees enforcement policies on illegal construction, dramatically accelerates planning approvals, advances new farms and settlement outposts, declares state land, transfers budgets, and reshapes governance across the West Bank.
“This is a revolution,” Smotrich has said. “Anyone trying to recognize a Palestinian state will receive an answer from us on the ground. It is time for full sovereignty in Judea and Samaria.”
At last week’s closed ministerial meeting, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, a close Netanyahu confidant, expressed support for sovereignty. According to participants, he said: “There will be sovereignty in the West Bank—the only question is over which areas.”
Omer Rahamim, CEO of the Yesha Council, said Thursday morning: “It is right for Israel to move toward sovereignty, but we must ensure it is good sovereignty, not dangerous. Half a million Israeli citizens cannot live under military rule. If sovereignty is applied only to settlement blocs, it means the rest becomes a terror state—another Gaza in the heart of the country. We completely oppose that.”