Israeli ministers have approved a bill to annex Jordan Valley settlements to the Jewish state, threatening US-brokered peace talks with Palestine. Ministers opposing the proposed legislation plan to appeal the decision and demand a revote.
Eight ministers on the Committee for Legislation voted in favor
of the bill, while three - including the finance and justice
ministers – opposed it.
The proposed legislation would apply Israeli law to settlements
in the Jordan Valley and the roads leading to them. No
restrictions will apply to construction in the area, unless
officially approved by the Knesset – Israel’s parliament.
The author of the bill, Knesset member Miri Regev, said she
submitted it “solely for diplomatic and security
reasons.”
Regev reiterated her position on Sunday, stressing that the
Jordan Valley is the “safety belt” on the eastern
border.
"The ministerial committee's approval of this bill now, when
there are talks with the Palestinians, is a clear statement by
the government that the towns in the Jordan Valley are a
strategic and security asset of the State of Israel that must
stay in our hands," she said.
However, critics of Regev’s bill called the proposal
“irresponsible” and “populist,” alleging that
it will be harmful to Israel.
“This is an irresponsible and populist bill that seeks to tie
the hands of the government and the prime minister” Justice
Minister Tzipi Livni said, adding that the vote has been taken
“in haste.”
“Its price will be harm to the State of Israel and isolation
in the world,” she said.
Israel's Science, Technology and Space Minister Jacob Perry
accused the bill of being both a provocation and a publicity
stunt amid sensitive negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.
He vowed to file an appeal with the Supreme Court.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat also condemned the bill,
telling Ma’an news agency that it shows Israel’s
"indifference" to international law and undermines US
efforts for peace.
Resolving the dispute over the Jordan Valley - a territory which
Israel captured in the 1967 war and Palestinians seek as part of
their future state - is "a critical threading of a needle
that has to happen in order to achieve an agreement,” US
Secretary of State John Kerry said.
The move, which comes days before Kerry’s visit to the region, is
now threatening to thwart US-brokered peace negotiations. After a
three-year deadlock, the talks have so far shown a few signs of
progress.
The Sunday vote of the Ministerial Committee for Legislation
comes two days after Israel announced it would soon free 26
Palestinian prisoners. The release – the third to take place this
year – is part of Kerry’s roadmap for peace between the two
sides. A fourth and final release is set to occur at a later
date.
The US has set a deadline for Israel and a new Palestinian state
to achieve a "two-state solution" by April.
Kerry plans to travel to Jerusalem and Ramallah to meet with
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian
Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on January 1.