Labor Party Proposes Bill to Prevent Unilateral Israeli Annexation of Jordan Valley
[See earlier story "Assailing the right, Livni says settlements harm Israel's security."
A bill preventing Israel from unilaterally annexing territories will be brought to the Ministerial Committee for Legislation for discussion on Sunday and will be brought to a Knesset vote next Wednesday.
The "Two States Bill," proposed by Labor MK Hilik Bar, is a response to Likud MK Miri Regev's bill proposal to annex the Jordan Valley and apply Israeli law there.
The bill also requires that the final status of Judea and Samaria be determined only within the framework of a two-state solution agreement with the Palestinians.
The bill was a joint effort of Bar, the grassroots movement OneVoice and diplomacy experts, and was signed by MKs from Labor, Meretz and Shas.
Annexing the Jordan Valley would "sabotage Israel in the diplomatic negotiations, harm the efforts of the prime minister to come to a two state solution, deepen the rift that already exists between us and the US, and permanently destroy the chances for the two state solution, which is the only solution that will guarantee Israel’s future as a Jewish, Zionist and democratic state," a statement issued by Labor said.
Bar, the chairman of the Knesset Caucus to Resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, said the bill will determine "once and for all" whether the coalition parties were for or against the two-state solution.
The bill's aim is to "encourage" the Israeli government and the Palestinian leadership to come to a resolution to the conflict, but only in the framework of a two-state solution, Bar said.
"Any other solution would be devastating to the future, security, and status of Israel and of the Palestinians."
"Unilateral annexation of territory by Israel would constitute, as is well-known, a death knell for the negotiations and to our efforts to make peace in the framework of a two state solution," Bar continued.
He harshly attacked the coalition factions, saying that "there seems to be some sort of competition as to who can damage more Israel and the Prime Minister’s efforts to achieve peace and to navigate their way through these negotiations."
Control of the valley has been a sticking point in the negotiations. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has insisted that for security reasons Israel must maintain a military presence there.
Many Likud, Yisrael Beytenu and Bayit Yehudi politicians want the settlements to remain as well, and for the area to become a permanent part of the State of Israel.
Sources close to Israeli peace negotiator Tzipi Livni said that "any bill proposal, whether from the Left or the Right, that is meant to bind the government's hands or restrict its authority to make diplomatic decisions, will grant the proposing MK headlines for one day, but will not receive the government's support."
Regev's bill proposing to annex the Jordan Valley received a lot of support from the Right, but drew condemnation and criticism from the Left and from the Palestinians.
The vote “shows the extent of Israeli disrespect for international law and the efforts of the [Middle East] Quartet,” Palestinian Liberation Organization chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said.
Likud's coalition partners Hatuna and Yesh Atid plan to appeal Regev's bill proposal.
“This is an irresponsible bill and those who support it are irresponsible,” said Livni.
“It is a proposal that harms the State of Israel and isolates it,” she said. “It is also designed to harm the government, because this is a matter of government policy and not [the subject] for a private bill.”
US Secretary of State John Kerry was set to arrive in Israel on Thursday for his tenth visit to the region.
Kerry will be promoting a framework guidelines agreement, that would attempt to bridge the gaps between the two sides on some core issues.
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Gil Hoffman contributed to this report.