Germany has announced it will lift restrictions on exports of military equipment to Israel, a move occurring amidst heightened israeli government opposition to a potential Palestinian state and ahead of a United Nations Security Council vote on a U.S.-drafted resolution concerning Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several of his ministers have recently reiterated their opposition to a Palestinian state, prior to Monday’s UN Security Council vote on the American draft resolution, which raises the possibility of one in the future. The new draft resolution, unlike previous versions, endorses Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza and evokes the future of a possible Palestinian state – a concept the Israeli government has long firmly opposed.
“Our opposition to a Palestinian state on any territory has not changed,” Netanyahu stated on Sunday, opening a council of ministers, adding he did not need “personal lessons” on the matter.
Far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich accused officials of remaining silent since France and other countries recognized the State of Palestine in September, calling for “an appropriate and firm response…that will clarify to the whole world: there will never be a Palestinian state on the lands of our homeland.”
Itamar Ben Gvir, another far-right government figure, declared his party, Otzma Yehudit (“Jewish Power”), would not participate in “any government that would accept” the creation of a Palestinian state.
Defense Minister Israel Katz and Foreign Affairs Minister Gideon Saar also emphasized their refusal of any Palestinian state.
The American draft resolution endorses Donald Trump’s plan, which facilitated a fragile ceasefire in the Gaza Strip on October 10 after two years of conflict. The text authorizes the deployment of an “international stabilization force” (ISF) in the Palestinian territory and proposes a “peace committee,” chaired by Donald Trump, to administer it provisionally until the end of December 2027.
