Hebrew media sources on Tuesday said that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is preparing to introduce a bill to impose Israeli sovereignty on Ma’ale Adumim settlement east of Jerusalem as part of the project “E1”.
The Hebrew TV channel 20 said that Netanyahu expects that the US president Donald Trump will not try to prevent this move.
The TV channel added that Netanyahu’s move comes to appease the angry right-wing who are frustrated with the slow pace of settlement construction in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
It pointed out that the same bill was proposed several times in the past but it was repeatedly rejected due to US pressures.
The Hebrew channel revealed that talks has been conducted between Tel Aviv and Washington in recent weeks on this matter. Israelis believe that if Trump realizes that Palestinians do not want to be engaged in negotiations mediated by the US he may not oppose the annexation of Ma’ale Adumim.
“E1” area acquired its name from the abbreviate for the word “East”. It is located adjacent to East Jerusalem and covers an area of 12 square kilometers. There are Israeli plans for construction in this area to create a physical link between Ma’ale Adumim settlement and Jerusalem.
On 23rd December 2016 the UN Security Council adopted a draft resolution that condemns the Israeli settlement construction and calls for its complete halt saying that it undermines the two-state solution and the peace process.
