Will Israel risk angering Trump over annexation?

They say there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and in the political world of maintaining good relationships, that goes double!

Embroiled in a two-year war, which resulted in hundreds of Israeli hostages, freeing the last 20, who remained alive, as well as the additional 28 dead bodies, may never have come to a positive resolution, had it not been for the intervention of U.S. President Donald Trump, along with his unrelenting negotiating team.

Wanting to move forward, by putting this matter to rest, Israel is, without a doubt, beholden to the American administration, without whose help, we would probably still be in “stuck” mode.

However, at what price did we extract those hostages from the pit of hell? That’s the question with which we will have to grapple, because the cost may very well have impacted our ability to independently make our own decisions, even despite on our status as an independent nation.

Help that is rendered, especially given the magnitude and investment made in this round of assistance, would obligate us to further a particular political direction of those who came to our aid when we most needed it?

In this case, Trump has made it very clear that he is not in favor of Israel annexing territories which have been categorized, by some, as disputed areas. So, despite the nearly exclusive Jewish populated area of Ma’ale Adumim, a city just seven kilometers east of Jerusalem, annexing this part of land, beyond the Green Line, would be done at the risk of greatly angering the U.S. president.

That is because, over the last several months, Trump has made significant overtures of friendship to many Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE. Courting these leaders, to join his efforts for Middle East peace and prosperity, they reached out, in kind, promising to forge a new future together.

While they may be a tad more friendly towards Israel, in comparison to other hostile Arab neighbors, it would be fair to say that they are not effusively warm towards the Jewish state as it presently stands. So, if we were to annex more territory, at such a delicate time, when these countries have made their greatest effort towards a new Middle East reality, any good will, on their part, could easily be undone.

Since this is likely Trump’s fear, he realizes that the situation must be handled with kid gloves, avoiding any undue offense to them. That’s where leaning heavily upon Israel comes in, and that is exactly what he has done.

In a daring move, a couple of days ago, “the Israeli Knesset passed two bills in preliminary readings aimed at advancing annexation measures in Judea and Samaria, despite opposition from the Likud party. One bill, proposed by Avigdor Liberman, leader of the political party Yisrael Beiteinu, specifically called for the annexation of Ma’ale Adumim.”

Although this has been a long-wished-for aspiration of many ultra-Orthodox, who comprise the government coalition members, the idea never really materialized beyond the talking stage. October 7th changed all of that.  Because once it became clear that Hamas sought to forcibly seize our land, the direct response to their invasion was to annex more land.

From a standpoint of logic and reason, it could be argued that it was much more than a punitive measure, because an area which is inhabited by 40,000 Jews, for all intents and purposes, is already seen as belonging to Israel in every way possible, short of an official declaration.

Designated as part of the land of the West Bank, a term which originated after Jordan annexed it in 1950, that name was seen as a derogatory reference to what had always been known as the biblical land of Judea and Samaria, belonging to the Jewish people.

Calling it “the disputed territories,” and referring to its residents as “settlers,” keeps it within a preferred political context for those who are not supportive of a Jewish state in the Middle East nor wish to see it expand its reach to include more land.

That means that in order to keep everyone somewhat happy, Israel would have to prevent what would be seen, by many, as pulling off a hostile takeover of more land, regardless of the fact that the area is already a de facto Israeli city.

But given all of the intense hatred, which emerged from this Hamas-Israel war, would it be the most opportune time to make such a controversial move? On the other hand, could Israel be hated any more than she already is?

Probably not, but that is not the main consideration for the Jewish homeland at this critical juncture.

The real question, here, is whether or not we want to alienate the American administration which has, in many ways, gone to the wall for us. Obviously, there are good arguments on both sides. The choice to retain our independence and full sovereignty is paramount, but to do so would mean going it alone, next time.

The decision to back those who support our presence and right to exist as a Jewish homeland is equally compelling. At a time when we were under attack by multiple enemies and, most of all, in danger of the Iranian regime’s realization of possessing nuclear weapons, America came to the rescue by setting their goals back by many months and possibly even years.

Those actions do not come free of charge, and so now Israel is being told, not asked, to abandon any plans of annexation, so as not to jeopardize the hard work and good will which has taken months to build between more moderate Arab states.

While all this is understandable, it’s also impossible to completely ignore the prophetic scriptural narrative which supersedes all plans and political aspirations since God’s agenda trumps even that of Trump’s.

One thing remains clear. When the Almighty decides that He will execute His particular plan, it will be up to Him to push aside all impediments, to overrule governments, leaders and agencies and, most of all, protect the people who reside in the land which He gave to them.

At that point, we hope that America will remain our friend, but they will no longer be essential to take on the role of our protectorate!