Donald Trump gives Israel the green light to annex occupied lands
His proposal may not bring peace, but could still have a lasting effect on the conflict
FOR MONTHS they said the timing was simply wrong. Members of the Trump administration, led by the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, worked for two years on a plan to solve the decades-old conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, finishing last year. Then they waited for an opportune moment to release it.
On January 28th that moment arrived. Never mind that Israel was headed for its third election in less than a year, with a prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, facing trial for bribery, fraud and breach of trust. Or that, while Donald Trump unveiled the plan at the White House, senators at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue listened to arguments in his impeachment trial. Or that the Palestinians had not spoken to America in two years.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline "The sound of one hand shaking"
From the February 1st 2020 edition
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