Rep. Jimmy Panetta’s Statement on Netanyahu’s Expansion into the West Bank

Monterey, CA - United States Representative Jimmy Panetta (CA-19) released the following statement on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed expansion and potential annexation of the West Bank:

"Prime Minister Netanyahu's proposal to expand settlements in the West Bank and reject the prospect of a future Palestinian state only pushes the goal of peace further out of reach. Israel's long-term security and democratic character depend on pursuing a future in which Israelis and Palestinians alike can live with peace, dignity, autonomy, and security in their own states. Settlement expansion and the violence that so often accompanies it serves only to deepen divisions, harm innocent people, and erode hopes for lasting stability in the region.

"The United States has a responsibility to chart a different course. One that halts settlement expansion and violence, ends the war in Gaza, secures the release of hostages, delivers lifesaving aid to those in need, and lays the foundation for a durable peace. That is the path we must press toward, especially as the world's leading democracy."