U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s recent stance in which he backed Israel’s settlements in the West Bank faced global backlash. The stance once again shows Washington’s dictatorial character in the region.

The U.S., its current president, and his team have repeatedly and formally declared their full support for the illegitimate Zionist regime and emphasized their alliance with the regime by taking stance on issues related to Palestine.

The Arab world and the larger international community still oppose the U.S. which has recognized the occupied al-Quds (Jerusalem) as the capital of Israel. It should be noted that this time the U.S. has backed Tel Aviv through the voice of Pompeo. The U.S. secretary of state has recently announced that his country no longer considers the Israeli settlement in the West Bank as “inconsistent with international law”.

.He said the former U.S. governments opposed settlements in the occupied territories but the current government does not object the move

After the remarks by Pompeo, the world reacted angrily to the U.S. position.

In this regard, Hamas spokesman Hazem Ghasem condemned the announcement, Pompeo, calling it completely inconsistence with international law. Ghasem stated that the remarks are a new emphasis on Washington’s engagement in the war against the Palestinian nation and rights. He added that the settlements are illegal just like occupation, and our nation will continue to fight the Zionist regime to stop settlements, expel invaders, and return Palestinians to the land that they had been forced to flee.

The Islamic Jihad Movement also condemned Pompeo’s remarks, saying these remarks are manifestation of hostile and illegitimate colonization. Criticizing the Arab world’s stance on Palestine, the movement said that the silence of Arab countries over Israeli offensive into Gaza, al-Quds, and the West Bank has emboldened the U.S. to take such hostile decisions. Meanwhile, even the EU and Russia have condemned the U.S. position and found it to be inconsistence with international law.

The Palestinians were not indifferent and sent seven letters to the UN. The letters, which were addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and presidents of the Security Council and General Assembly, insisted strong opposition to the U.S. position on the Israeli stealing of the Palestinian lands.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Pompeo’s announcement and said it is the correction of a historical mistake. Netanyahu had a phone conversation with Trump and praised Washington’s position.

The U.S. says that it has changed its stance on settlements and will no longer adhere to the stance that it had four decades ago. Soon after the U.S. announcement, Russia and the EU said that they have not changed their position and still consider settlements in the West Bank illegal.

Over past three years, the Trump administration has taken positions in support of the Tel Aviv regime which have been followed by international community’s reaction. In 2017, Trump announced that he recognizes al-Quds as the capital of Israel. Therefore, global objection to the recognition was heightened. And a year later, the U.S. officially transferred its embassy to al-Quds. The action was taken to back Tel Aviv and incite the Palestinians in particular and the Arabs in general.

In addition to all these actions, in March 2018, Trump recognized Israel’s illegal sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is part of the Syrian territory

The latest U.S. efforts is to advance the hostile plan known as “deal of the century”, which has so far been opposed by Palestinian groups and some Arab countries. The deal ignores all Palestinian rights, including the right of the displaced people to return to their homeland.

Of course, it should be noted that the U.S. has taken this position while Israel is facing political disputes and crisis in forming a new cabinet. Trump’s ally, Netanyahu, is making any efforts to form a new government, but it seems that he will not succeed, and his rival, Benny Gantz, is playing an important role in political arena.

Therefore, the U.S. support for the Zionist regime in the current circumstances cannot be examined apart from the situation in Israel which is caught in a political crisis. It appears that the U.S. intends to assist Netanyahu and strengthen his position through formal and public support for settlements.

 In any case, the U.S. position on the West Bank is in line with Netanyahu’s pre-election promises to annex some parts of the West Bank to occupied territories. Therefore, both sides, Trump and Netanyahu, in a coordinated move are seeking to expand illegal settlements to finish deal of the century puzzle.