The spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, Tami Bruce, stated that what the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Mike Johnson (Republican from Louisiana), said on Monday in the Ariel settlement regarding the West Bank, which he referred to as Judea and Samaria, represents his personal opinion.
Bruce was responding to a journalist's question (during her press conference at the State Department) about the U.S. government's stance on Johnson's visit to the settlement and his statement that "Judea and Samaria is the historical land of the Jews." However, when following up her initial response with a question about the U.S. government's position on that, her reply was unclear and ambiguous, as she said, "I will not speak here about the government's opinion."
The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Johnson, visited the "Ariel" settlement in the occupied West Bank on Monday, where he delivered a speech at a conference for settlers, accompanied by the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, in an unusual move for one of the most powerful elected officials in the United States.
According to Mark Zell, head of "Republicans Abroad" in Israel, Johnson said, "The mountains of Judea and Samaria belong to the Jewish people," criticizing countries that call for the recognition of a Palestinian state.
For its part, the right-wing newspaper "Israel Hayom" revealed on Tuesday that Israel presented Johnson with "maps and documents" related to how to impose Israeli sovereignty (annexation) over the occupied West Bank.
According to the newspaper, this occurred during a meeting held by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with Johnson on Monday in the "Shilo" settlement northeast of Ramallah in the West Bank.
This is the first time Netanyahu has informed U.S. officials – including Johnson and his accompanying delegation – of Israel's intention to take "an unavoidable military decision in Gaza," according to the newspaper.
Israeli reports and leaks in recent days have discussed Netanyahu's intention to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, which Israel occupied for 38 years (1967-2005).
Israel Hayom stated that Israeli authorities presented maps and documents during the meeting that clarify their vision for imposing complete Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, without disclosing the details of these documents.
Observers believe that any move to annex any part of the West Bank would effectively end the possibility of implementing the two-state solution, which is supported by the United Nations and forms the basis for any future political settlement.
Johnson has long been an ally of the Israeli right, using his position as Speaker of the House to support efforts to bolster right-wing positions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (in both America and Israel). He is also considered one of the closest allies of the organization: "American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC)," from which he received $796,000 (seven hundred ninety-six thousand dollars) in the 2024 election cycle to fund his campaign.
Among the lawmakers who joined Johnson on the trip was Republican Congresswoman Claudia Tenney from New York, the chair of the Friends of Judea and Samaria caucus, which was established earlier this year to support Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
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U.S. State Department: House Speaker Johnson expresses his opinion on the West Bank