From the Liveblog of
Friday, September 26, 2025
Senior Israeli official: Netanyahu never intended to annex West Bank, Trump ‘pulled his chestnuts out of the fire’
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A senior government official tells Channel 12 correspondents traveling with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in New York that Netanyahu never intended to annex parts of the West Bank in response to Western nations recognizing a Palestinian state.
Israel has made threats to do so in recent days. However, yesterday, US President Donald Trump announced that he will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank.
“In the equation of annexation as an appropriate Israeli response to international recognition of a Palestinian state, we are left with recognition and no Israeli response,” the official tells Channel 12.
“There will not be annexation and Netanyahu never intended for there to be an annexation, because he won’t endanger the Abraham Accords,” the official says, referring to Israel’s normalization deals with the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco.
The official says Trump’s announcement helps Netanyahu stave off pressure from far-right elements in his government, like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Public Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
“Trump pulled [Netanyahu’s] chestnuts out of the fire. What will Smotrich and Ben Gvir say now? Annex, even though Trump said no,” the official says.
The Times of Israel Community.