The central committee is only an advisory body, and Sunday’s vote did not reflect an official policy change. The Palestinians condemned the decision and accused Trump of emboldening the Likud Party. JERUSALEM— The ruling Likud Party’s central committee has unanimously endorsed a resolution calling for the annexation of West Bank settlements, sending a tough message to the Palestinians in the wake of President Donald Trump’s recognition of Israel’s capital. Erdan said the Likud Party was responsible for annexing Jerusalem and the Golan Heights in the 1980s, and it would do so with West Bank settlements as well. Most of the international community considers Israel’s West Bank settlements, built on land captured in the 1967 Mideast war and claimed by the Palestinians for their future state, illegal.

Source: thestar January 01, 2018 15:11 UTC