Yossi Dagan meets with U.S. leaders to advance sovereignty agenda in Judea and Samaria

Samaria Council Chairman Yossi Dagan concluded a four-day series of bipartisan meetings in Washington on Wednesday to secure support for applying Israeli sovereignty in Judea and Samaria.

Among the key figures expressing support was House Middle East Subcommittee Chairman Michael Lawler (R-NY).

“I really appreciate what you are doing. Millions of people in Israel, and especially the pioneers in Judea and Samaria, appreciate it. We know very well what you are doing for us and for justice and security in the entire world,” Dagan told Lawler.

Leaders of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria have expressed hope that U.S. President Donald Trump would revisit the issue, aligning his previous plans with provisions for applying Israeli law to Area C of Judea and Samaria.

The Oslo Accords divided Judea and Samaria into Areas A, B, and C. In Area A, the Palestinian Authority maintains administrative and security responsibility. In Area B, the Palestinian Authority has administrative jurisdiction, but Israel maintains responsibility for security. In Area C, where all of Judea and Samaria’s Jews live, Israel has administrative and security jurisdiction. Area C makes up 60 percent of the territory of Judea and Samaria.

In addition to his congressional meetings, Dagan also held discussions with Trump’s Mideast affairs adviser, Massad Boulos. A Lebanese-born businessman, Boulos’s son, Michael, is married to Trump’s daughter Tiffany.

“It’s a big pleasure and an honor to have met you. I would like to convey through you my heartfelt appreciation to the people of Samaria and our brothers and sisters in the region — in Israel, in Lebanon, and in the entire region,” Boulos said in a video Dagan posted on Sunday.

The Civil Administration, a unit within the Israel Defense Forces, has been responsible for implementing Israeli civilian policies in Judea and Samaria since they were captured during the Six-Day War of 1967.

Dagan’s visit comes amid ongoing efforts to solidify U.S. support for Judea and Samaria. In February, Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) established Congress’s Judea and Samaria Caucus, which now consists of 20 lawmakers. The caucus has already introduced legislation to require official U.S. documents to use the term “Judea and Samaria” instead of the “West Bank.”

Judea refers to areas south of Jerusalem, including Gush Etzyon, the Hebron region, and areas to the east all the way to the Dead Sea. Samaria is a collective reference to areas north of Jerusalem, such as the Binyamin region, the Jordan Valley, and Samaria.

Judea was the name of the region when it was a province of the Roman Empire. Roman authorities renamed the province Syria Palaestina, or “Syrian Palestine” following a failed Jewish insurrection in 135 CE.

The name “West Bank” comes from its geographic location on the western side of the Jordan River. Following Israel’s War of Independence, Jordan occupied Judea and Samaria and named it “The West Bank” to distinguish it from the “East Bank” of Jordan River, which makes up Jordan proper.

Similar legislation is making its way through the Knesset.