Dr. Masoud Assadollahi, in an interview with the website of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, referring to the statements of the Israeli Prime Minister that “we will not let this opportunity (1st of July ) pass, said: “Annexation of new parts of the West Bank is one of the most controversial parts of the Deal of the Century. These lands according to all international treaties are considered “occupied territories” and have been occupied by the Zionists during in the 1967 war.

He added: “None of the international treaties and organizations, including the United Nations considers this region to be the property of Israel. Although they have recognized the Zionist regime, but for them the borders of 1948 are valid.” Unfortunately, despite this international reality, the US administration and Trump himself, as a peace plan, are ignoring all these international accords and are constantly giving unprecedented concessions to the Zionist regime.”

Disagreement between US, Zionist Regime over Annexation of  West Bank

The Middle East affairs expert said that despite the current US administration’s stance, there is a difference of opinion even between the Trump administration and Netanyahu. He added: The Americans know that Netanyahu’s haste in declaring his intention to annex these regions may end up in the failure of the entire plan; therefore despite all the support Trump is giving Netanyahu, he has been explicitly asked not to do the annexation and postpone the scheme it to after negotiations with the Palestinian side.

Referring to Netanyahu’s opposition to the US officials’ request, Assadollahi said: “Basically, the Zionists do not believe in giving or taking any concessions by way of negotiations with the Palestinians. This is more so especially in the far-right Zionist faction.”

Distracting Public Opinion from Netanyahu’s Lawsuit

He also noted Netanyahu’s remarks that the plan to annex the West Bank was one of the main missions of his new government and said: “The annexation of these lands is of particular importance to Netanyahu in this context, as he currently has several lawsuits in the Zionist regime’s judiciary and has been formally prosecuted in recent days. He was interrogated as a defendant, although he is the prime minister. Under these circumstances, Netanyahu wants to mobilize public opinion in this controversial move so that he can influence the prosecution and save himself from this process.

Stressing that the Americans seem to realize that Netanyahu is treating the Deal of the Century project by serving his personal interests and that it will be to the detriment of the Americans themselves, the analyst said: “Netanyahu has stated that he will not wait for the talks and will annex the territories to the Zionist regime. In this plan, a set of strategic and personal issues should be considered and it should be seen where it will actually lead.”

Referring to some positions of the Arab states in this regard and holding meetings of the Arab League, he stated: “Unfortunately, these countries have been involved in their own internal affairs and domestic turmoil since 2011 and the Palestinian issue does not seem to have its former priority for them. Although they have been more supportive in appearance in the past, they have prioritized these issues, at least in statements by Arab League leaders and at various meetings.”

Assadollahi added: “The Palestinian issue has been significantly weakened since 2011, and in principle, countries in the Arab systems and Arab states not only do not pay any attention to it, but sometimes rush to normalize relations with the Zionist regime and think by approaching Israel they can solve their problems, especially those they are facing at the regional and international levels. Therefore, they cannot be expected to take an influential position in this regard, especially the Arab states in the Persian Gulf, because they themselves are cooperating behind the scenes with the Zionists, and the Palestinian cause does not matter to them at all.

Passivity of Arab Governments

Referring to the Jordanian government’s tough stance on the Zionist regime’s decision, he said: “The Jordanian government is the only one concerned because of worries about some issues, including the influx of new immigrants from Palestinians living in the West Bank to Jordan which could have great national security risks for Amman. Of course, this stance of the Amman government too is at the level of issuing political statements, making speeches and position takings by the King of Jordan. Apart from this, other Arab countries do not have any kind of mobility and do not even observe the appearance.”

Despair of the Palestinian Authority

Referring to Mahmoud Abbas’s remarks about repealing all previous agreements with the Zionist regime, the university professor noted: “In the current situation, there is practically nothing left of the Palestinian Authority. In fact, the territory they had considered for the PA was a small area, and now they want to annex the main land to the territory of the Zionist regime. Therefore, if Abbas shows any other behavior it would be surprising; because there is nothing left. Even now, the Americans are unwilling to negotiate with Mahmoud Abbas, and the Trump administration does not recognize anything called the Palestinian Authority. Abbas must make such a decision, otherwise it will mean his disappearance and elimination.

Assadollahi said there was no hope that Abbas would actually do so, adding: “He may adopt such a position in the form of releasing statements but in practice it seems unlikely that he will rescind all the agreements. Of course, most of these agreements have not been implemented. These areas that Netanyahu is seeking to annex are virtually occupied by the Zionist regime, and he only wants to formally annex them and make it legal.

Need to Confront Zionist Regime with Strategy of Resistance

Regarding the warnings and criticisms of European countries over Netanyahu’s decision, he said: “They oppose it, but in general their opposition is not effective, because the Americans are not cooperating with them. For example, the import of products made in the Israeli lands and settlements of post- 1967 war is prohibited in Europe, but what effect has this had? This decision must be taken at a higher level, and the UN Security Council must pass and implement the necessary resolutions. All in all, the Zionist regime must be confronted with the strategy of resistance, because there can be no hope for these resolutions and decisions.