Responding to the news today of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement that he will continue to discuss unilaterally annexing parts of the West Bank with the Trump administration after missing the July 1 start date:

“Prime Minister Netanyahu once again promised to sell Israel’s soul to the radical settler right and to President Trump’s evangelical base. Netanyahu and Trump’s creep towards annexation in the West Bank threatens to cut the heart out of Israeli democracy and profoundly harm all those who live in the region. Unilateral annexation can only end in further entrenched inequality and unending injustice. The ‘start-date’ of July 1 may have passed, but the fight for equality and democracy in Israel is far from over.

“There is much we still do not know. But one thing is certain: one inch of annexed territory is one inch too many. There can be no democratic future for Israel with unilateral annexation. Annexation makes occupation permanent, pre-empts a two-state solution and destroys any horizon for a genuine resolution to the conflict.

“The New Israel Fund will continue to support those who are on the ground fighting for democracy and human rights and against annexation and occupation.”