The report cited Israeli officials who claim that the Israeli team preparing the plan for the application of Israeli sovereignty to parts of Judea and Samaria is considering radically altering the plan, dropping the proposed extension of sovereignty over a large bloc of territory in Judea and Samaria, and focusing exclusively on Israeli towns in the area.
Up until now, the sovereignty plan was closely tied to the proposal for Israeli sovereignty drawn up in the Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan, under which Israel would apply sovereignty to most of the Jordan Valley, the Dead Sea area, and blocs of territory close to the pre-1967 Israeli border.
The plan would place around 30% of Judea and Samaria under Israeli sovereignty, including roughly half of Area C, which is under full Israeli control, but which is not under Israeli law.
Under this arrangement, Israel would extend sovereignty to all of its towns in Judea and Samaria, with all but 15 included in a larger, contiguous bloc of territory to be put under Israeli law.
The fifteen Israeli towns not included in the contiguous bloc would be placed under Israeli law, but would be separated territorially from the rest of the country, remaining isolated enclaves. In these enclaves, Israel would be restricted from expanding existing towns or building new communities for the next four years – or jeopardize American recognition of the sovereignty plan.
Those restrictions angered some settlement leaders, who said the move would leave 15 towns cut off from the rest of the country and unable to expand, making them “second class communities”. (Read More)
