Shlomo Ne'eman
Shlomo Ne'emanHezki Baruch

Gush Etzion Regional Council Head Shlomo Ne'eman issued a statement regarding the expectation that Israel will annex all of the towns and new neighborhoods in his region.

"After two very full and complicated days, I can report to you that in the next few days the Israeli government will make the decision to apply Israeli law to all of the areas in Judea and Samaria, including, obviously, all of the towns in Gush Etzion," Ne'eman wrote.

"The plan has many details, and many details are still being worked on. This is not the time and place to explain in detail. The biggest task I see facing myself and my colleagues who lead other regions in Judea and Samaria is to ensure we will not have to pay a heavy price for these historic moments.

"There is no reality in which the Israeli government will agree to the creating of a Palestinian Arab state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, and after a few meetings with the Prime Minister, with [Tourism] Minister Yariv Levin (Likud), and with the Prime Minister's staff, led by his office's Director-General, we can say that this task was completed. The Israeli government will not be forced to give in exchange or to tie any compromise to its own achievements.

"In the coming days we will continue working to bring about the great news: Deciding on settlement areas which will be under Israeli sovereignty, deciding on new management policies for all the aspects of municipal life, adjusting the issues of planning and building, creating transition guidelines which will apply during the interim period, and so on.

"It's important to note that there are 15 towns in Judea and Samaria which will remain isolated, and in Gush Etzion there are three towns: Ma'ale Amos, Metzad, and Karmei Tzur. Sovereignty will also be applied to these towns, as well as to their access roads, which serve as lifelines. One of our most important tasks right now is to decide on as broad borders as possible for these isolated towns, during the interim period facing us.

"I will end, with your permission, on a person note. As I write these lines in the White House in Washington, my hands are trembling. The flag of sovereignty which was raised so proudly and with such strength in Gush Etzion was raised last night in the White House. The nation, and us together with it, are starting on a new path. There is no end to the doubts and concerns we have, and even if, G-d forbid, the picture is more complicated than what it seems right now, we must still give thanks, praise, and extol the Creator of the world, who has given us such great good and given us our portion in the expansion of Israel's borders.

"Let's work together to ensure the success of this enormous process and ensure the success of upholding our principles."