Israeli leader insists there can be no Palestinian state, ahead of UN
vote leaving that door open
[November 17, 2025]
By MELANIE LIDMAN
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed
Sunday to oppose any attempt to establish a Palestinian state, a day
before the U.N. Security Council planned to vote on a U.S.-drafted
resolution on Gaza that leaves the door open to Palestinian
independence.
Netanyahu has long asserted that creating a Palestinian state would
reward Hamas and eventually lead to an even larger Hamas-run state on
Israel’s borders. But as the U.S. attempts to push forward with its Gaza
ceasefire proposal, he faces heavy international pressure to show
flexibility.
The Security Council is expected to vote on a U.S. proposal for a U.N.
mandate that would establish an international stabilization force in
Gaza despite opposition from Russia, China and some Arab countries.
Hamas and Palestinian factions warned Sunday against the U.S. proposal,
calling it an attempt to impose an international mandate on Gaza that is
biased toward Israel and deprives Palestinians of the right to manage
their own affairs. In a statement, the groups said the force must not
involve Israel and must be under direct U.N. supervision.
The statement also rejected any reference in the U.S. proposal to
disarming Gaza. Netanyahu on Sunday noted the proposal calls for Gaza to
be demilitarized and Hamas to be disarmed, telling his Cabinet: “Either
this will happen the easy way, or it will happen the hard way."
The U.S., under pressure from countries expected to contribute troops to
the force, had revised the resolution with stronger language about
Palestinian self-determination. It now says that President Donald
Trump’s plan may create a “credible pathway” to Palestinian statehood. A
rival Russian proposal uses even stronger language in favor of
Palestinian statehood.
The creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel is seen
internationally as the only realistic way to resolve the conflict for
the long term.
Netanyahu's hard-line governing partners have urged him to take a tough
stand on the calls for Palestinian independence. Netanyahu said Sunday
that Israel’s opposition to a Palestinian state has “not changed one
bit" and is not threatened by external or internal pressure.
“I do not need affirmations, tweets or lectures from anyone,” he said.
That pressure increased during the war in Gaza. In September, after the
U.K., Australia and Canada formally recognized a Palestinian state,
Netanyahu blasted the countries for proffering a “prize” to Hamas.
Settler attacks on the rise in the West Bank
The Israeli leader also made his first public comments about a surge in
attacks by Jewish settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, saying the
violence was the work of a small minority. Palestinians and human rights
groups say the violence has been widespread and accused the government
of turning a blind eye.
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Mourners carry the body of the Palestinian Hassan Ahmed Jamil
Moussa,19, who, according to health authorities, was killed during
an Israeli raid last night, during his funeral in the Askar camp
near the West Bank city of Nablus, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi
Mohammed)
Palestinian health officials said Sunday that a 19-year-old
Palestinian man became the seventh person to be killed in the West
Bank in the past two weeks by Israeli fire. The spike in violence
has been accompanied by a surge in settler attacks.
The Israeli military said it was operating in Nablus, in the
northern West Bank, early Sunday when the man hurled an explosive
device at soldiers, who fired in response.
The military later said its forces had killed someone in the Far’a
area of the West Bank who “attempted to harm them,” with no details.
There was no immediate Palestinian comment.
In addition to Sunday’s clashes, the Palestinian Health Ministry in
the West Bank said six teenagers — ages 15 to 17 — were shot and
killed by Israeli fire in four separate shootings over the past two
weeks.
On Sunday, Netanyahu cast settler violence as the work of a few
extremists. But Palestinians and rights groups say the violence is
carried out by settlers with impunity from Israel’s far-right
government. Settler leaders and their allies hold top positions in
Netanyahu's government, including the Cabinet ministers who oversee
the national police force and West Bank settlement policies.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week said there’s concern
that the events in the West Bank “could undermine what we’re doing
in Gaza.”
U.N. Human Rights Commissioner spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan has
said the U.N. recorded more than 260 attacks by Israeli settlers
against Palestinians and their property in the West Bank in October,
more than in any month since 2006.
More on Gaza
Israel’s military said its troops on Sunday killed someone who
crossed into territory they control in northern Gaza and “posed an
immediate threat to them.”
In Khan Younis in southern Gaza, families in the crowded Muwasi tent
camp picked their way along flooded streets after winter’s first
strong rainfall that started on Friday. Water dripped through torn
tents onto belongings. Children splashed barefoot or in sandals, or
tried to ride bikes.
“Our bathroom is made of fabric. Everything is made of fabric, and
it’s worn out from the sun, so the rain pours down on us. It’s
indescribable suffering,” said one displaced Palestinian, Abdallah
Abu Quta.
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