A motion to adopt US President Donald Trump’s 20-point “Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict” advanced in the Knesset on Wednesday, passing its first reading with 39 votes in favor and zero votes against.

Almost all coalition lawmakers, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, didn’t attend the vote, in an apparent boycott of the motion, which was brought by Opposition Leader Yair Lapid. The few coalition lawmakers who were in attendance, including Likud MK Tali Gotliv, declined to participate in the vote.

Beyond outlining a path toward ending the conflict and disarming Hamas, Trump’s plan hints at a potential pathway to Palestinian statehood, but does not provide many details or an estimated timeline for when this could happen. This element of the plan has drawn pushback from some coalition and government members, who oppose any effort to establish a Palestinian state.

Given the plan’s reference to Palestinian statehood, which the government opposes, a coalition boycott of Wednesday’s vote had been expected, with the vote largely viewed as an attempt to embarrass the coalition. Nevertheless, Lapid told the Knesset that he was “surprised and disappointed” by Netanyahu’s absence.

“This is the first opportunity we have been given as a Knesset to tell President Trump, to tell the world, to tell ourselves, that we are uniting around a common goal,” Lapid said. “Netanyahu chose to boycott the vote and not come here. It’s a shame.”

Beyond outlining a path toward ending the conflict and........

© The Times of Israel