Watch live as Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on Friday, 26 September.
It comes after Donald Trump promised Arab leaders that he would not let Israel annex the occupied West Bank, according to reports.
Several Israeli ministers in the Israeli prime minister’s government have called for the annexation of the West Bank, which Israel has subjected to military occupation since 1967, in response to the growing global recognition of a Palestinian state.
Arab leaders, angered by Mr Trump’s support for Mr Netanyahu, and Western officials have expressed worries that the US president could recognise Israeli sovereignty over illegal settlements in the West Bank in retaliation for the UK, Australia, France and others deciding to recognise Palestine.
Mr Trump has privately reassured Arab leaders during a closed-door meeting at the UN that he would not allow Mr Netanyahu to annex the West Bank, six people familiar with the matter told Politico.
It comes after the General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to support a two-state solution and urge Israel to commit to a Palestinian state, which Mr Netanyahu opposes.
The 193-member world body approved a nonbinding resolution endorsing the “New York Declaration," which sets out a phased plan to end the nearly 80-year conflict. The vote was 142-10 with 12 abstentions.
Speaking at the signing of an agreement to expand settlements that will divide the West Bank, which the Palestinians insist must be part of their state, Mr Netanyahu said “there will be no Palestinian state.”
The resolution was sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia, who co-chaired a high-level conference on implementing a two-state solution in late July, where the declaration was approved.
The nearly two-year war in Gaza and the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict are expected to be at the top of the agenda of world leaders at their annual gathering at the General Assembly starting on Sept. 22. The Palestinians say they hope at least 10 more countries will recognize the state of Palestine, adding to the more than 145 countries that already do.
