Benjamin Netanyahu has emerged as the victor of Israel’s legislative elections. His Likud Party is well-positioned to gather the 61-seat majority needed to form a governing coalition, thus bringing him a record fifth term as prime minister.

What is the impact of these elections on Israeli domestic politics, relations with the Palestinians, the prospects for Middle East peace, and future US-Israeli relations?

Further, Netanyahu announced during his campaign that he intends to annex parts of the West Bank. Indeed, President Donald Trump recently “gifted” Netanyahu the recognition of the Golan Heights as Israeli territory and designation of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization. This is all after last year’s US embassy move to Jerusalem and recognition of the city as Israel’s capital, against long-held US policy. Will Trump support and recognize Israel’s annexation and sovereignty over the West Bank? Will the Trump Administration finally reveal its long-awaited peace deal? What are the prospects for a just peace under a fifth term of Netanyahu’s premiership and his right-wing coalition? And domestically, with the upcoming US presidential elections and an evolving Democratic Party, are we to expect US policy toward Palestine/Israel to change?

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Speakers:

• Peter Beinart, Professor of Journalism and Political Science, City University of New York
• Phyllis Bennis, Director, New Internationalism Project, Institute for Policy Studies
• Nadia Hijab, Co-founder and Board President,
• Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network
• Mouin Rabbani, Co-Editor, Jadaliyya; Senior Fellow, Institute for Palestine Studies
• Amir Tibon, Washington Correspondent, Haaretz Newspaper

Khalil E. Jahshan – Moderator, Executive Director, Arab Center Washington DC