Netanyahu to name Golan settlement after Trump

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he wants to name a new settlement in the Golan Heights after US President Donald Trump out of gratitude for the White House's recognition of Israeli sovereignty. 

Netanyahu said he intends to advance "a resolution calling for a new community on the Golan Heights named after President Donald J. Trump."

In March, Trump officially recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, a move which sparked international outrage. Trump's decision came two weeks before a highly contested Israeli election, which saw Netanyahu elected to a fifth term in office.

"All Israelis were deeply moved when President Trump made his historic decision," Netanyahu said in a video statement made on the strategic plateau, adding that there was a "need to express our appreciation" to the president.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the 1967 Middle Eastern War and later annexed it, a moved unrecognized by most in the international community. Some 20,000 Israeli settlers live in Golan, while about 18,000 Syrians reside in the occupied region. 

dv/se (AP, Reuters)

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