CAIR Welcomes Trump's West Bank Warning But Warns 'Annexation Already Underway' Through Settlement Expansion
The Council on American-Islamic Relations supports President Donald Trump’s direct statement about Israel losing U.S. backing if it implements West Bank annexation. However, they note that de facto annexation through settlement expansion has been ongoing for years.
During his October 15 Time magazine interview published on Thursday, Trump delivered his strongest statement against West Bank annexation by stating, “It won’t happen,” after Israeli lawmakers passed initial legislation to establish Israeli control over occupied territory. The president confirmed his commitment to Arab nations by stating that U.S. support for Israel would disappear if annexation occurred.
Knesset Vote Sparks Diplomatic Crisis
The Israeli parliament supported two annexation bills for the West Bank and the Ma’ale Adumim settlement area, which need three more parliamentary approvals to become law. However, the symbolic vote received immediate criticism from the Trump administration.
Vice President JD Vance expressed his disappointment about the parliamentary vote during his visit to Israel for diplomatic purposes to sustain the Gaza ceasefire. Multiple news sources reported that Vice President JD Vance described the parliamentary action through a 25-24 vote on Wednesday, although Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposed the measure. He described the legislation as “an idiotic political stunt,” expressing his personal offense.
“The political stunt appears to be extremely foolish because it damages our relationship with Israel. The West Bank annexation policy of the Trump administration remains unchanged.
The West Bank will not experience Israeli annexation according to our administration’s official stance.
— Vice President JD Vance
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced from Israel that the Knesset’s actions endangered the 20-point Gaza peace plan, which President Trump supports. The Knesset’s actions create a threat to the peace agreement, according to the Anadolu Agency.
De Facto Annexation Accelerates
CAIR supports Trump’s public stance against annexation. Still, the organization, together with other advocacy groups, considers Israeli settlement growth as a form of de facto annexation, which has rapidly increased since October 2023. Peace Now tracks Israeli settlement growth in the West Bank using its data, which shows that 121 new illegal outposts have appeared since October 2023, bringing the total to 298 since 1996.
The European Union documented that Israel advanced 28,872 settlement construction plans in 2024, a 250% increase from 2018 to 2024. The Israeli government approved E1 settlement construction in August, which would create a physical separation between East Jerusalem and the West Bank by dividing Palestinian territory into two separate areas.
Escalating Violence in the West Bank
The Israeli military operations and settler attacks in the West Bank since October 2023 have resulted in 1,056 Palestinian deaths and 10,300 injuries, while Palestinian authorities report 20,000 people are under detention. The Norwegian Refugee Council documented that 1,400 Palestinian structures were destroyed during 202,5, which forced 1,772 people to become homeless.
The Crisis Group identified Israel’s strategy as “quickening annexation” in their October report because Netanyahu’s government includes prominent settler movement members who direct the state toward permanent West Bank control.
Regional Implications for Peace Efforts
The United States will not pursue formal annexation because Trump made promises to Arab leaders during his September United Nations meetings, according to Politico. The United Arab Emirates established annexation as a “red line” after normalizing relations with Israel through the 2020 Abraham Accords, which Trump facilitated.
The United States has failed to gain support from Arab and Muslim nations for its Gaza stabilization force because they consider West Bank annexation an absolute obstacle to regional cooperation. The Palestinian Authority supported Trump’s position on Thursday through spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh, who called on the president to continue his efforts toward Middle Eastern peace and stability, according to Anadolu Agency.
The International Court of Justice issued a historic July ruling which established that Israel maintains illegal control over Palestinian territory while demanding complete settlement removal from the West Bank and East Bank becomes impossible when Israel annexes the West Bank. Jerusalem. The implementation of a two-state solution to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through United Nations resolutions