While Mr. Netanyahu himself has been the sole Likud leader not explicitly supporting annexation in the West Bank, his political predicament might well pull him into the annexationist camp. And the item at the top of their wish list is extending Israeli sovereignty to the West Bank. As the Israeli journalist Aluf Benn points out, this is a campaign that won’t turn on any issues but on Mr. Netanyahu himself. Should Mr. Netanyahu emerge victorious once again, the prospects of Israel taking this path are alarmingly high. Michael J. Koplow is the policy director of the Israel Policy Forum in Washington.

Source: New York Times March 22, 2019 10:01 UTC