T. Belman. This is hugely important. One wonders why no previous Ministers of Defence appointed by Netanyahu waged war against this encroachment. My guess is that Netanyahu didn’t want them to, but that Bennett insisted that he be permitted to do so as part of his appointment. It bothers me that Bennett wants two years to do it.. Why doesn’t he do it post haste?
If Likud forms the next government, I am sure he will remain as Min of Defence and continue what he has started. If Blue and White wants to form the government, he can join it to enable it to exceed the 61 seats required, providing he is appointed the Min of Defence with the same powers.
Israel Hayom learns that Defense Minister Naftali Bennett wants to put an end to European-funded illegal Palestinian construction in Israeli-controlled areas, designed to establish “facts on the ground,” within two years.
Illegal Palestinian construction | Photo: Regavim
Defense Minister Naftali Bennett is working to implement his commitment to stop a European-funded Palestinian takeover of unpopulated parts of Judea and Samaria through unpermitted construction, Israel Hayom has learned.
The paper has obtained the instructions Bennett recently issued to the security establishment.
In the past few weeks, Bennett has held several meetings with high-ranking officers in the IDF’s Central Command; the Coordinator for Government Activities in Judea and Samaria; and additional officials in the security establishment to define specific priorities for enforcement by the IDF Civil Administration. Bennett seeks a “total stop to illegal Palestinian construction within two years.”
At a meeting in Bennett’s office, top-ranking officials were presented with comprehensive data about a years-long Palestinian and European attempt to establish facts on the ground, according to which Area C – which is supposed to be under Israeli control and which comprises some 60% of all territory in Judea and Samaria – is home to some 200,000 Palestinians who live in about 25 recognized villages and hundreds of clusters of illegal housing.
Israel’s security establishment estimates that over 1,000 illegal housing starts – the majority of which are funded by foreign money – are underway in Area C. These illegal construction projects have a combined value of tens of millions of dollars.
Participants in the meeting were shown a map that lays out the extent of the illegal Palestinian building activity, which Israel has done little to counter in recent years.
Defense and security officials call the illegal construction “a well-organized tactic by the Palestinian Authority to illegally take over large areas of Area C that are under Israeli control, as part of a broader strategic move.”
Defense Minister Naftali Bennett
The officials say the Palestinian plan is being carried out as part of the “Fayyad Plan,” named after former PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. The program includes many tools that the Palestinians and Europeans can use to wrest Area C away from Israel, such as foreign money going to fund illegal construction at key locations, like ones that threaten to cut off Israeli settlements. In addition, the Fayyad Plan calls to flood the Israeli legal system with petitions for injunctions against Israeli demolitions of illegal construction.
Bennett’s plan to stop the Palestinians from chipping away at Area C demands action in four areas: Operational, economic, legal, and PR. He wants to change enforcement priorities to put an emphasis on eradicating illegal buildings in strategic locations rather than by numbers. For example, home demolitions would be carried out in accordance with Israeli interests, prioritizing illegal buildings next to roads or settlements.
Bennett also instructed the Central Command and the Civil Administration to work more closely to implement his plan and asked that the Civil Administration report to him monthly to update him on progress.
Meanwhile, the defense minister is weighing the possibility of allocating more resources to the Civil Administration for enforcement, which would entail hiring more personnel. Bennett also wants to take steps to stop the flow of European money that funds the illegal Palestinian construction in the first place, allowing the Fayyad Plan to flourish.
Touching on the issue of foreign funding, Bennett said in the meeting with defense officials that “We will no longer stand aside while the European Union builds political, illegal construction here. We have a position, and it is that this must be stopped.” Bennett sent a similar message to EU envoys when he met with them two weeks ago.
@ Bear Klein: I hope you are right. But it seems like an unlikely scenario to me. Since it does look like Bibi will remain in office as a caretaker prime minister even after the election, and he seems unlikely to withdraw voluntarily, to the extent that the deadloock after the first two elections was the result of personal objections to Bibi,the deadlock after the first two elections is likely to recur after the third. Unless the left gets a clear majority and most Blue-White and Labor members are willing to accept some sort of Arab anti-Zionist role in the governing process, or unless Leiberman changes his mind about willing to support a left-leaning government that relies in part on Arab support, efforts to form a government are likely to fail yet again.
But again, I don’t see how the leftists who form the majority of the Gantz-led coalition will be willing to accept the Likud, or much the less the parties to the right of the as a partner with them in government. And I can’t see the Likud and the other Right parties wanting to serve in a government headed by Gantz,since it would lay them open to their constituent seeing them as collaboraters withGantz’s pro-Arab, pro-Palestinian policies
I have always believed that Israel’s political paralysis results from a near equal division among Israeli Jews between those who favor trying to accommodate the Arabs in the hope of making oeace with, and those who favor a tough response to Arab hostility. I think that public opinion has to move decisively toward one or the other of these approaches for Israel to have a stable, functioning government.
Adam, I agree that if their is a head’s up Primary Bibi versus Saar that Bibi will likely win.
I do not agree that if Saar or another Likud leader such as Barkat were the head of the Likud that a coalition would not be formed. Until the last two elections, Israel has always managed to form coalitions.
Your assumptions, about Israelis not being overcome differences to form coalitions and that weight you put on some things (e.g. Peace Process) is mistaken. Yes the right would prefer a right wing government and vice-versa and there are differences on religion and state.
Israelis have been able to form governments even with differences in policies on issues. The difference here is that the largest party Blue/White ran on a platform that opposes the Prime Minister as its main point. If he gets out of the way hopefully voluntarily for the good of Israel, the Likud could find a new leader that it badly needs and the country has a chance in being better off.
By the way once Bibi is gone from the Likud his power will be mostly gone and the politicians will be off making new alliances. He will no longer control the party. Several others will via for leadership. Barkat and Saar will likely be the top two contenders, though some others like Edlestein will likely throw their hat into the ring.
The Blue/White stated position is they want a unity government with the Likud and someone besides for Bibi is at the head it would be fairly easy. It would not be hard to envision a coalition of Likud, Blue/White, New Right and Labor/Gesher if Saar or Barkat were the head of Likud. If Bibi runs again then the Likud likely will be in the opposition.
Bear, a reality check shows that Sa’ar is highly unlikely to be the standard bearer (no pun intended) for the Likud in the coming election. The polls of Likud voters still show Bibi the overwhelming favorite in the coming primary over Sa’ar. Hence he is likely to remain both Likud Leader and Prime Minister at least through March 2, and probably for at least a few weeks afterwards.
If Bibi is forced to resign either by the judicial-prosecutorial alliance or his fellow Likud leaders, the new leader will probably be be someone more acceptable to Bibi than Sa’ar, whom he resents for challenging his leadership several times.
Even if Bibi is out of the picture, there is no guarantee that a third election will produce a functioning government. The gap between the parties is not solely about Netanyahu personally. The disagreements between the right wing and left wing blocs over important policy issues make it very difficult for them to work together to form a government. Most members of the left bloc favor a policy of accommodation with the PLO and even Hamas. Most members of the right wing bloc are opposed to further concessions to the Palestinian regimes. Most members of the left wing bloc want Israel to be a secular society. Most members of the right wing bloc favor keeping Orthodox Judaism as Israel’s established religion, and support allowing the rabbanite to retain certain powers, over such matters as marriage, divorce, conversion and burial. It is difficult to bridge the gap between these positions. The result might be a another failed Knesset and the continued absense of a permanent government and legislature with normal powers. That is the worst case scenario. But the fact that the politicians were unable to agree on a new government twice means that there is a real possibility they will fail a third time.
The Arabs of Area C should be expelled to area A as quickly and ruthlessly as Jews were expelled from Gaza. As ruthlessly as necessary.
@ Wooly Mammoth:Reality check says that if Bibi runs again the Likud will be in the opposition. Bibi twice has not been able to form a coalition and chance are even less that he could now.
Polls plus two elections tell us this!
@ Bear Klein:
It is difficult to know for certain what Sa’ar would do if he actually became PM.
I mean, what if he did not wish to have Bennet remain Minister of Defense or even have him in the government.
I believe the reason Bennet could not acquire DM prior, is that Netanyahu could see that Bennet would be unstoppable once he was given free reign to implement some of the ideas Bibi was hearing from Naftali. Netanyahu was not about to be upstaged by anyone, so he held Bennet in check, since he realized the potency of his intelligence and the will to carry out an extremely bold agenda. One in which Netanyahu probably respected.
Everything is different now and PM N. is confronted with the present situation in which he has been politically wounded. He is plenty smart to know that for the good of the country and his legacy, he needed to open the floodgate and finally allow fate to take place.
As such Bennet’s appointment as DM is the de facto crowning of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s heir apparent.
For these reasons, I personally would do everything humanly possible to support this PM. Sa’ar can come in later, if the electorate wish that to be.
I do not take Sa’ar at his word on things, at this point.
Stay the course, Brother Bear.
What would make great sense voters is to realize talent and people of action. They should vote NEW Right in the next election. If the New Right gets enough seats Bennett could be Defense Minister and Shaked Justice Minister.
This is most likely if Saar is the head of the Likud.
As popular as Bibi is with many it has been demonstrated clearly that he is unable to form a government, that is unlikely to change in the future. So wise Likud voters will in the primary vote for Saar, even if they appreciate the many things Bibi has done for Israel.
Ironically Bibi ONLY appointed Bennett to be Defense Minister for political reasons (to stop him from possibly joining a Blue/White coalition).
Now Bennett is doing what is vitally needed in all sorts of sphere’s including preemptive bombing of Iranian facilities in Syria. Coordination of Security with residents of Judea/Samaria and the IDF which had collapsed into a bureaucratic black hole.
He is solving other security problems with common sense and energy. He is already a million times better at the DM position than either Bibi or hot air first Liberman (supposedly Bibi kept him chained to a desk).