Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has promised senior officials in Jewish Home that the US framework for peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority will not be allowed to actualize, Ma’ariv reports Friday.
“We made it clear that we will not stand by this [the US framework] and this was promised to us,” a senior official told the daily. The promise was allegedly made during talks held between Likud and Jewish Home; the official explained that Jewish Home leader and Economics Minister Naftali Bennett has threatened to leave the coalition in the event that Netanyahu agrees to accept the interim agreement, which would see Israel give away land for a Palestinian state.
Bennett told Israel Radio Thursday that Israel has been paying for decades for the US’s policy mistakes in the Middle East – and that Israel should not have to pay any more for the bungling of a foreign body.
“Washington insisted on instituting elections for the Palestinians, and they elected Hamas,” Bennett said. “Washington insisted that Israel withdraw from Gaza, and in return we got tens of thousands of rockets on southern Israel, after democratically elected Hamas took over Gaza.”
Regarding the US framework, which not only gives away land but could also see NATO handle the security issues that may arise between Israel and a Palestinian state, Bennett draws the line.
“We will never let anyone else be responsible for our security,” Bennett continued. “Only the IDF will defend Israelis. In recent weeks we have been told that if we make a deal with the Palestinians then prices will go down, but if we don’t Israel will be isolated and forsaken. I would suggest that all these people making these threats think twice. Israelis are stronger than these threats, and no one will persuade us to destroy our national home with these threats.”
@ rfelsted:
No Doubt!! BB is so fickle! He SAID about a thousand rockets ago that if there was just ONE more rocket fired at Israel….yadda yadda yadda. He is an empty threater!
@ dove:
This is more than enough a reason to bail on the “peace” talks!
Third rocket fired in the past 24 hours
A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck the Eshkol region Thursday night fell in an open area, the IDF spokesperson’s office reported, but caused no damage or injuries.
According to some reports the IDF’s Iron Dome missile interception system intercepted an incoming rocket.
The rocket was the third to be fired at Israel over the past 24 hours. The other two rockets, while setting off sirens in the Ashkelon region, fell in open areas and did not cause injury or damage.
On Tuesday, Gaza’s Hamas rulers said they had redeployed a 600-strong special security force tasked with preventing cross-border rocket fire, after reports it had pulled the unit back two days before.
I wonder where they would withdraw to? if they unilaterally withdrew it is likely that they would keep jerusalem the valley and perhaps most of C.
Actually that was Sharon’s idea which he had to sell to Bush.
Time to stop blaming others for our stupidity!
Hopefully this is true!