JERUSALEM/CAIRO - Israel on Thursday froze the West Bank annexation bills that passed a preliminary vote in the Israeli parliament, or Knesset, the day before.

Ofir Katz, chairman of the government coalition, said in a statement that the bills for the full annexation of the West Bank and the annexation of the large-scale settlement of Maale Adumim near Jerusalem will not be advanced until further notice.

Israel's parliament voted Wednesday 25-24 in favor of the two bills to apply Israeli law and administration to all settlements in Maale Adumim and the West Bank.

The bill, introduced by right-wing lawmaker Avi Maoz of the Noam Party, now heads to the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee for further debate.

The vote was carried out during US Vice-President JD Vance's visit to the country.

Speaking to reporters at Ben Gurion International Airport outside Tel Aviv before his departure on Thursday, Vance said the vote was a "political stunt" which has no practical significance.

"If it was a political stunt, it was a very stupid political stunt, and I personally take some insult to it," he said.

He noted that the West Bank would not be annexed by Israel, which would continue to be the policy of US President Donald Trump's administration.

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The US vice-president said that, despite it being "symbolic votes," "we are certainly not happy about that."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement that the parliamentary vote on annexation "was a deliberate political provocation by the opposition to sow discord during US Vice-President JD Vance's visit to Israel".

It explained that Netanyahu's Likud party "did not vote for these bills ... Without Likud support, these bills are unlikely to go anywhere."

Hamas, Fatah hold talks on post-war arrangements

Meanwhile, delegations from Hamas and Fatah are currently meeting in Cairo to discuss arrangements for the post-war phase in the Gaza Strip, Egyptian TV channel Al-Qahera News reported Thursday.

Hamas' delegation is led by senior leader and chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya, while Fatah's delegation is headed by Palestinian Vice-President Hussein al-Sheikh and Palestinian intelligence chief Majed Faraj, according to the report.

It added that Cairo is also hosting talks among Palestinian factions on the second phase of  Trump's peace plan for Gaza, noting that Egypt is preparing to host a conference on Gaza's reconstruction in the second half of November.

Egypt's intelligence chief meets Palestinian VP

Earlier in the day, Egypt's intelligence chief Hassan Mahmoud Rashad held talks with the Palestinian vice-president and intelligence chief in Cairo over the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire plan, while reaffirming rejection of the Israeli Knesset's recent approval of a bill regarding annexation of the occupied West Bank.

They discussed efforts to end the crisis in the Gaza Strip and stabilize the ongoing ceasefire in the enclave, according to the Egyptian broadcaster.

Also on Thursday, Rashad met in Cairo with Secretary-General of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine Fahd Suleiman, as part of Egypt's efforts to achieve Palestinian national consensus on the implementation of Trump's plan, according to the report.

READ MORE: Arab nations, US reaffirm support for Gaza truce

Cairo is also hosting talks among Palestinian factions aimed at reaching consensus "within the framework of the second phase of US President Donald Trump's peace plan", the report said.

It added that Egypt is intensifying its communications with the S "to stabilize the ceasefire in Gaza and achieve a just and lasting peace in the region".

Rashad met with Netanyahu in Israel on Tuesday, where they discussed advancing Trump's plan, as well as ties between the two countries, according to Netanyahu's office.