Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the possibility of a land swap with the Palestinians just two weeks after becoming Israel’s prime minister, according to documents released by the whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks.
A classified cable from February 26 2009 recorded that Mr Netanyahu “expressed support for the concept of land swaps” in exchanges with the newly - elected Obama administration.
The cable continued: “[He] emphasised that he did not want to govern the West Bank and Gaza but rather to stop attacks from being launched from there."
The document was referring to a meeting Mr Netanyahu had with a US delegation led by Maryland senator Benjamin Cardin.
An Israeli official said: “The Prime Minister never raised the issue of land swaps and the telegram does not quote him as saying so.”
The latest WikiLeaks release included revelations that politicians in Arab states, including Saudi Arabia , called on the US to take action against Iran’s nuclear programme.
Mr Netanyahu said that “no classified Israeli material” had been exposed in the leaks.
He said: “Every Israeli leader has known for years that that dispatches are likely to leak out, so we adapted ourselves to the reality of leaks.
"That has a bearing on who I invite to meetings.”
