Pompeo flies to Israel despite coronavirus travel restrictions to discuss annexation, peace plan

Secretary of state’s visit lasted just six hours and came a day before Israel’s unity government is due to be sworn in

Benjamin Netanyahu and Mike Pompeo in Jerusalem on Wednesday (GPO via Getty)

Mike Pompeo waived strict coronavirus travel restrictions to fly to Israel on Wednesday for a lightning visit, meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu and his power-sharing partner Benny Gantz to discuss a Middle East peace deal and Israeli plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank.

The six-hour visit came just a day before Mr Netanyahu’s unity government with Mr Gantz, a former army chief, was due to be sworn in, and as violence flared in the Palestinian territory.

Hours before the US secretary of state touched down in Tel Aviv, an Israeli soldier shot and killed a 15-year-old Palestinian during a confrontation near the city of Hebron.

A manhunt was also underway after an Israeli soldier was killed on Wednesday during an army raid in the north.

With permission to ignore Israel’s mandatory two-week quarantine for foreign visitors, Mr Pompeo donned a red, white and blue face mask and headed straight to meetings in Jerusalem.

There he expressed his condolences for the soldier’s death, saying “Israel has the right to defend itself”.

He discussed about issues with Iran as well as advancing Donald Trump’s peace plan, which in January triggered widespread condemnation from the Palestinians, Arab states and members of the international community, including the UK, for crushing hopes of a viable Palestinian state.

Labelled as the most pro-Israeli vision for the Middle East, the document hands the contested city of Jerusalem to Israel as its capital in addition to 30 per cent of the West Bank.

The occupied territory is home to over 3 million Palestinians, as well as some 750,000 Israelis who live in settlements deemed illegal under international law.

“There remains work yet to do, and we need to make progress on that. I’m looking forward to it,” Mr Pompeo said of moves to implement the peace plan.

He later met Mr Gantz, who in 18 months time is set to become Israel’s prime minister in a rotation deal with Mr Netanayhu. The ex-army chief’s spokesperson said Mr Pompeo “looked at the different avenues for bringing about [the peace plan’s] realisation”.

Ahead of the visit, Mr Pompeo told Israel Hayom that it was ultimately “Israel’s decision” to push ahead with annexation.

On Wednesday, Mr Pompeo also spoke about Iran during his trip, claiming the regime was using its resources to “foment terror across the world”, even while struggling with the coronavirus pandemic.

With Mr Trump facing election in November, Mr Netanyahu and his nationalist support base are keen to move ahead quickly with unilaterally taking over parts of the West Bank like the strategic Jordan Valley.

The premier hopes to maximise the Trump administration’s pro-annexation stance, particularly as presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, has repeatedly said he opposes annexation plans.

But Israel is facing mounting pressure to ditch the plans from outside the States.

On Monday, the UK’s junior Foreign Office minister James Cleverly spoke out against the imminent annexation of parts of the West Bank, telling the British parliament it would make a two-state solution with the Palestinians more difficult to achieve.

The EU is also reportedly mulling sanctions against Israel should it press ahead with annexation. Earlier this month, some 130 British MPs also urged the UK to do the same in a letter to Boris Johnson.

Divisions have even appeared within the US administration on the matter, Daniel C. Kurtzer, a former US ambassador to Israel told The Independent.

“There has been hesitation from the US recently,” he said, pointing out that Jared Kushner, Mr Trump’s son-in-law who co-authored the peace deal, suggested Israel not move too quickly with carving up the West Bank.

“There is a divided US administration... does it want to be dealing with a major foreign policy problem at the same time as the coronavirus? There is no certainty that support for annexation is an electoral boost for the administration,” he added.

He noted that a six-hour visit to Israel amid intense coronavirus restrictions and fears it could pose a risk to health was “crazy”.

Addressing the secretary of state on Wednesday, Mr Netanyahu hinted that the formation of his new government with Mr Gantz would allow Israel to push ahead with annexation.

Under the terms of the new unity government deal, the government can begin pushing forward legislation allowing annexation from the 1 July.

Mr Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has battled to hold on to power after being indicted on corruption charges he vehemently denies.

Following three inconclusive elections in less than a year and weeks of fierce negotiations, he managed to cement a power-sharing rotation deal with Mr Gantz.

Under the arrangement, Mr Netanyahu remains prime minister for 18 months, before the Mr Gantz takes over for the second half of the term.

Mr Gantz, less hawkish than Mr Netanyahu, previously insisted that annexation not be unilateral but instead implemented “in coordination with the international community”.

Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip in the 1967 Middle East war. The Palestinians seek these territories for a future independent state.

Most of the international community considers these settlements a violation of international law and obstacles to peace.