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Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked has proposed a "confederation" between parts of the West Bank, Jordan and Gaza.
"Our plan is to apply Israeli sovereignty to Area C and to give Palestinians who live there full citizenship. Regions A and B will be part of a confederation with Jordan and Gaza, "she told reporters Wednesday in Jerusalem.
"There is a large Palestinian population in Jordan and Palestinians already have a state in Gaza. In the distant future, a confederation of these three entities will be the right way to go, "she added.
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Responding to a question from the journalist about how she sees the "end of the game" of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Shaked, a member of the Nationalist Party Jewish Home, appeared to support the "stability plan" of the party's president, Naftali Bennett. .
First published in 2012, the plan calls for Israel to annex Zone C of the West Bank, home to most Jewish settlers. According to the Oslo Accords, Israel exercises total military and administrative control over Area C, which covers about 60% of the territory of the West Bank.
According to the plan, Palestinians residing in Area C would be offered Israeli citizenship or residency status, while those living in Zones A and B – which are under total or Palestinian control or under joint Israeli-Palestinian control – would govern themselves, without having a sovereign state.
Bennett, whose party categorically opposes a Palestinian state, has repeatedly spoken in recent months of "Palestinian autonomy on steroids" in Zones A and B.
In June, he once again dismissed the two-state solution, claiming in an interview that he was "open to other ideas, like a Jordanian confederation," although we do not know exactly what he was referring to.
Shaked, speaking at a foreign press conference organized by The Israel Project, acknowledged that the Palestinians loudly opposed Bennett's plan, insisting on an independent state based on the 1967 lines, while stating that their position may change over time.
"Today, they do not agree. it may sound like science fiction. But not so long ago, the Israelis were sent to jail for talking to [Ybader] Arafat, "she said, referring to a period in which contacts with the Palestine Liberation Organization were illegal in Israel.
"Things are changing," she added. "In the international community, they like to say that Judea and Samaria [the West Bank] are under occupation – they are not. These are areas in dispute. For the moment, the Palestinians are opposed to our plan, but perhaps in the future they will accept a confederation. "
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (right) meets Jason Greenblatt, US President's Deputy and Special Representative for International Negotiations, at the Abbas office in Ramallah, West Bank, on March 14 2017 (WAFA).
The idea of a confederation, albeit in a different form, has been raised in recent months in the context of the long-awaited peace proposal of the US administration.
In September, President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, said that key envoys of President Donald Trump had asked him what he thought of the creation of a confederation between Palestine and the United States. Jordan.
"I said [to the envoys, Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt]Yes, I want a three-way confederation with Jordan and Israel, "Abbas said at the time.
But Greenblatt denied that a confederation is part of the plan. "We are not looking for a model of confederation," he told the Times of Israel in September.
Shaked, a member of the security cabinet, predicted last week that Trump's efforts to negotiate an Israeli-Palestinian peace would be in vain.
"I think the gap between Palestinians and Israelis is far too big to be filled," she said in an interview in English on stage at the Jerusalem Post Diplomatic Conference.
"I personally think it's a waste of time," she added. "Although I want peace like everyone else, I think I'm just more realistic. And I know that in the future, it's impossible.
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