US President Donald Trump has promised Arab and Muslim leaders that he will not allow Israel to annex the occupied West Bank, a move Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is considering in response to a number of countries formally recognising a Palestinian state this week.
Trump made the pledge on Wednesday at a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, where Arab and Muslim leaders expressed their growing alarm at Israel’s actions across the Middle East and pressed him to rein in Netanyahu and help end the war in Gaza.
His comments helped alleviate concerns that Netanyahu would push ahead with annexation, said one of the people who attended the meeting. “Netanyahu doesn’t do anything in the Middle East without a green light from the US,” the person said.