Minister calls for annexation of Jerusalem-area settlements

Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz calls on Israel to annex large parts of the West Bank in response to a UNESCO vote that rejects Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem.

“The appropriate answer to UNESCO’s decision and to anyone else who doubts our right to sovereignty is to pass the ‘Greater Jerusalem Law’ that includes extending Israeli sovereignty to the surrounding communities of Greater Jerusalem: Ma’ale Adumim, Givat Ze’ev, Beitar Illit and the Etzion Bloc,” Katz says in a statement.

“Passing this law in full 50 years after the liberation and reunification of Jerusalem will send a clear message: Jerusalem is one and united under Israeli sovereignty,” he says.

The UNESCO resolution adopted earlier on Israel’s Independence Day passed with 20 countries voting in favor, 22 abstaining and 10 opposing.