In Response to Smotrich.. The US State Department: Trump Does Not Support Annexation of the West Bank

Translation by SadaNews - The US State Department confirmed on Friday evening that President Donald Trump does not support Israel's annexation of the West Bank.

This came in response to a question posed by a correspondent from Yedioth Ahronoth to the department regarding Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's statements, in which he stated that the recent steps taken in the West Bank aim to eliminate the idea of a Palestinian state.

The US Department also rejected Smotrich's other statements related to Israel's strategy regarding the expansion of its borders into Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, as translated by SadaNews.

On Thursday, during the inauguration of the Ma'oz Tzur settlement near Ramallah, Smotrich pledged that Israel would expand its borders in Gaza as well as Lebanon to the Litani River, which would provide defensible borders, and in Syria on the summit of Mount Hermon and the new buffer zone.

Smotrich added, "For the past two and a half years, we have been preparing everyone for the fact that this is our last political phase... We have a strong military force that has achieved successes on all fronts, supported by great divine assistance and exceptional work by the security apparatus in all its branches, and the time has come for us to achieve the political accomplishment."

He continued, "This is what is respected in our neighborhood in the Middle East, and this is what is required to enhance the security, existence, and future of the land of Israel."