Analyst: New Israeli cabinet 'fulfils Netanyahu's promises'

(15 May 2020) LEAD IN: Israel prepares for the swearing-in of its controversial new government. A Palestinian analyst says the cabinet will be closer to the extreme right, fulfilling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's promises of more settlement and annexation of Palestinian land. STORY-LINE: Palestinian writer and political analyst Jehad Harb says he expects the new Israeli government to build more settlements and annex Palestinian land. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his rival-turned-partner, Benny Gantz, are slated to hold a swearing-in ceremony of their controversial new government on Sunday. Harb says the new cabinet's form and nature will not have an impact on the occupation. "The issue is related to the occupation itself, and to maintaining the settlements and the Israeli soldiers controlling the Palestinian territories," he says. Netanyahu is promising to move forward with his new government to annex parts of the West Bank. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a one-day visit on Wednesday for talks that included discussions on President Donald Trump's Mideast plan, which envisions handing 30% of the West Bank to permanent Israeli control. The Palestinians strongly oppose annexation. Harb says the Palestinian response is likely to be divided between those resorting to "political and diplomatic measures" and those seeking "a violent confrontation with the Israeli occupation". Netanyahu and Gantz, a former military chief, announced last month they would put their differences aside and join forces.   Netanyahu will introduce Israeli plans to annex parts of the West Bank as early as this summer. The coalition agreement allows him to present an annexation proposal as soon as July 1. The Palestinians claim the entire West Bank, captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war, as the heartland of an independent state. Annexing chunks of this territory would likely put an end to the Palestinians' already diminishing hopes of a two-state solution. Palestinian commemorate their "naqba," or catastrophe today. Every year on May 15, the Palestinians remember the uprooting of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who either fled or were expelled from their homes during the 1948 war surrounding Israel's creation. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...