Major political troubles in the international arena await Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu once he forms his new government.
Senior Likud officials say that Netanyahu would do well to warn Itamar Ben Gvir from now on of the possibility that he will try to change the status quo on the Temple Mount and also warn Bezalel Smotrich from trying to expand the settlements project contrary to the coalition agreements.
The security situation in the West Bank is on the verge of an explosion and the Palestinian media and social networks are constantly inciting against the new government that is supposed to be established in Israel, according to those senior officials, if Netanyahu does not restrain Ben Gvir and Smotrich from now on, Israel may face a new armed intifada in the West Bank and a deep crisis in the relations with the Biden administration .
The Biden administration recently sent a number of clear warnings to Binyamin Netanyahu regarding the administration’s “red lines” for the new government in Israel.
The American message is clear: the administration will not tolerate unilateral measures in the West Bank aimed at annexing parts of it to Israel and it will not tolerate any change in the status quo on the Temple Mount.
King Abdullah of Jordan has already conveyed his concerns on the issue to the Biden administration, he expressed concern about the possibility that Netanyahu will annex the Jordan Valley to Israel and cancel Jordan’s special status on the Temple Mount defined in the peace agreement between Jordan and Israel from 1994 in which Jordan has custody of the holy places in East Jerusalem.
Jordan, Egypt and other countries in the European Union have warned Prime Minister-designate Netanyahu that violating the status quo on the Temple Mount could lead to an unprecedented security escalation.
The Biden administration is taking these warnings seriously and is looking for ways to restrain the new Netanyahu government.
According to political sources in Jerusalem, the Biden administration made it clear to Netanyahu that yielding to the pressures of Ben Gvir and Smotrich regarding the status quo and the Temple Mount and the settlement policy in the West Bank could affect the security coordination between Israel and the US regarding Iran. It seems that the administration is trying to take advantage of the neediness of the Netanyahu
government in the future for advanced means of warfare made in the USA, for the purpose of preparing for military action against Iran, in order to curb its policy on the Palestinian issue.
The new Netanyahu government needs the help of the Biden administration in the international arena in order to curb the political attack planned by PA Chairman Abu Mazen in the international arena and at the Criminal Court in The Hague.
It is likely that immediately after he forms his new government, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be invited to a first meeting with President Biden at the White House to discuss and coordinate positions on the two important issues at hand: the Iranian nuclear threat and the security situation in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
The Biden administration is very concerned about the fact that last week in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia hosted the Sino-Arab conference with the participation of the Chinese president and Arab leaders.
In the conference’s closing statement, it was emphasized that the Palestinian issue remains the main issue in the Middle East.
China, which is part of the new axis of Russia and Iran established as a counterweight to the axis of the United States and the European Union, is getting closer to the Arab countries and the Palestinians.
The Biden administration wants to reduce the influence of Russia, China and Iran in the Middle East and for this it needs full cooperation from the Netanyahu government
We must add to this the brash statements of PA Chairman Abu Mazen.
In an interview with the Saudi Al-Arabiya channel last week, Abu Mazen sent a message of warning to the new government in Israel.
“Beware of the possibility that the Palestinian people will lose their patience”, he said and emphasized that “I do not currently support military resistance to Israel but I may change my mind at any moment and then everything will change”.
Political officials in Jerusalem estimate that the Biden administration is striving to reach new understandings with Prime Minister Netanyahu, which say that he will restrain the policies and statements of his new ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Shasmorich in exchange for continued political and .security coordination between the administration and Israel on the issue of the Iranian nuclear threat
In their estimation, Netanyahu will have a hard time not accepting the American offer.
