Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to annex Jewish settlements in the West Bank if he wins another term of office in next week's elections.
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"I won't clear a single settlement. And I will naturally ensure that we control the area west of the Jordan River," Netanyahu said during an interview on Saturday with Israeli television.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 Six-Day War and hundreds of thousands of Jewish-Israelis are now living in the territory, which is claimed by Palestinians for their future state.
"Will we be in a position to ensure our safety and control over the essential regions of Judea and Samaria. We have seen what we got by withdrawing from the Gaza Strip," said the leader of the right-wing Likud party.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the West Bank belongs to Palestinians, and Netanyahu's pledge to annex Israeli settlements there would be another occupation measure by Israel.
Netanyahu claimed a withdrawal from the area could risk a "Gaza Strip in Judea and Samaria". Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, before the Islamist Hamas movement took control of the Palestinian coastal enclave in 2007.
Referring to US President Donald Trump's recent move to recognise Israel's claim to sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which Israel has also occupied since the 1967 war, Netanyahu said he wanted to move to the "next stage" and claim the West Bank.
Netanyahu is seeking a fifth term as prime minister in Tuesday's elections. Benny Gantz, the leader of Israel's new centrist Blue and White party, has however pulled ahead of him in recent polls.
Australian Associated Press