Qatar to suspend Gaza payments to pressure Israel over annexation

• Qatar will not resume the payments until the situation around possible annexation becomes clearer, the sources say.

The backstory: Israel's government has been debating plans to annex up to 30% of the West Bank as soon as July 1, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hoping for a green light from the White House to proceed.

• Any unilateral Israeli annexations would be widely considered a violation of international law and fiercely opposed by the Palestinians, countries in the region including Jordan, as well as the European Union.

Behind the scenes: Qatar has conveyed its message through multiple channels over the past two week, including in a Zoom meeting of donor countries to the Palestinian Authority.

• The Qatari representative in the meeting stressed that any Israeli annexation step in the West Bank will have consequences.

• The Western diplomats said his message was directed at senior Israeli officials who were also on the Zoom meeting.

The bottom line: The Qataris are concerned that Israel will implement its annexation plans on July 1 — Netanyahu's deadline — and don’t want to be perceived as enabling Israeli annexation by sending money to keep the peace in Gaza.

Go deeper: Netanyahu privately presents 4 plans for West Bank annexation