Netanyahu Says ‘Will Keep Working’ on Annexation ‘In Coming Days,’ a Day Before Target Date

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday, following a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, that his government “will keep working” on the issue of West Bank annexation “in the coming days,” hinting that it will miss a July 1 target date Netanyahu himself set.

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Speaking at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, Netanyahu said he met earlier on Tuesday with Trump’s envoy Avi Berkowitz and U.S. Ambassador David Friedman, “and spoke to them about sovereignty. It’s an issue we’re working on.”

Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz met with Berkowitz and Friedman on Monday, and told them that "July 1 is not a sacred date." 

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Gantz also said alluding to annexation that "anything that is not related to the coronavirus will wait," adding that the battle against the coronavirus would be long, “and that's exactly why Kahol Lavan, together with Likud, established this unity government and prevented a fourth election."  

Netanyahu responded by saying that the issue is not up to Gantz and his Kahol Lavan party to decide.

The Trump administration is expected to give Israel a green light to go ahead with annexation, but the scope and timeline has yet to be determined.