Vance says he was ‘insulted’ by Israeli Knesset vote on West Bank annexation, which Trump opposes

Vice President JD Vance said Oct. 23 he was personally insulted by a vote in the Israeli Knesset to advance a measure annexing the West Bank. 

“The West Bank is not going to be annexed by Israel. The policy of the Trump administration is that the West Bank will not be annexed by Israel. That will continue to be our policy,” Vance told reporters at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport. “And if people want to take symbolic votes, they can do that. But we certainly weren’t happy about it.”

He said the vote was purely symbolic, but added, “If it was a political stunt, it was a very stupid political stunt, and I personally take some insult to it.”

As Reuters reported, on Oct. 22, Israeli lawmakers advanced the first of four votes needed on a bill that would effectively annex the West Bank to Israel. Palestinians seek the territory for a future independent state, according to the Associated Press, and Israeli annexation would effectively end prospects for a two-state solution.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office called the Knesset vote “a deliberate political provocation by the opposition to sow discord during Vice President JD Vance’s visit to Israel.”

His office said the measure was sponsored by opposition members and lacked support from his ruling Likud party, making it unlikely to advance.

“The Likud party and the religious parties (the principal coalition members) did not vote for these bills, except for one disgruntled Likud member who was recently fired from the chairmanship of a Knesset committee,” the statement read. 

Days earlier, Trump made his position on the issue clear in an Oct. 15 interview with Time magazine in which he ruled out the prospect of Israel annexing the West Bank.

“It won’t happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries. And you can't do that now. We've had great Arab support. It won't happen because I gave my word to the Arab countries. It will not happen,” he said. “Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened.”

According to an August Reuters report, around 700,000 Israeli settlers live among nearly three million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. 

The Times of Israel reported Oct. 20 that Israeli settlers recently launched a new wave of violent attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, specifically targeting olive harvesters near Turmus Ayya and al-Mughayyir.

One video cited by the Times, filmed by American journalist Jasper Nathaniel, shows a masked individual wearing a Jewish ritual garment striking 52-year-old Afaf Abu ‘Olia on the head with a club. The attack left her bleeding and severely injured, according to the outlet. 

According to the Times, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that it sent troops and police to the area after reports of vehicle arson and physical violence “carried out by Israeli settlers.” It said that once police arrived, “the clash was dispersed.” 

In recent days, settlers have also attacked Palestinian olive harvesters in Taybeh, the West Bank’s last remaining Christian town, the outlet reported. Local residents told CatholicVote earlier this year that they regularly endure harassment, arson, and physical violence from settlers.