The Israeli right is in an uproar over a KANN report that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a security cabinet meeting to promote a Palestinian building plan for Area C in advance of a visit by US envoy Jared Kushner.
“If it’s true that this is an American demand, then we expect our government to say loud and clear – enough!” Gush Etzion Regional Council head Shlomo Neeman said.
The prime minister “must stop the delusional demands of our great friend [US President Donald Trump]” who, if he is a friend, would understand.
Neeman called for the government to annex Area C of the West Bank, rather than paving the way for Palestinian development there.
MK Ofir Sofer (United Right) accused Netanyahu of abetting the Palestinian Authority take-over of Area C with the financial support of the European Union. Sofer called on right-wing voters to prevent the prime minister from moving to the left of the political map after the September 17th election by supporting his party at the polls.
“We need to be as strong as possible,” Sofer said.
Binyamin Regional Council head Israel Ganz and Samaria Council head Yossi Dagan said that they hoped Netanyahu Palestinian construction plan, does not, heaven forbid, signal the direction the government will take after the elections.
They warned that the PA was already carrying out a massive amount of illegal construction in Area C, with the “clear goal of establishing a terrorist state in the heart of the country.”
The right-wing NGO Regavim, which is in the midst of campaign against illegal Palestinian construction in Area C, also denounced Netanyahu’s actions.
“We hope that this report is inaccurate and that the cabinet did not focus on approving a plan that plays into the hands of Abu Mazen [Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud] Abbas, a plan that will serve as the silver platter on which he will be handed the terrorist state in the heart of Israel he has dreamed of establishing.”
The KANN report follows the Israeli demolition last week of 12 permanent Palestinian buildings in Wadi Hummus because they were built within 400 meters of the security barrier.
The Obama administration had pushed Netanyahu to approve Palestinian construction in Area C of the West Bank as a gesture to the Palestinians. Israel has created numerous plans for Palestinians in Area C, but has approved very little construction. The Trump administration has not publicly chastised Netanyahu for the lack of Palestinian building permits, nor has it criticized it for continued settlement building.
Yet according to KANN, the Civil Administration has also delayed a planned meeting this week of the Higher Planning Council for Judea and Samaria, which was set to advance settlement building..
Kushner arrives in the Middle East, in part to advance the political part of the Trump administration’s peace plan. Arab states and European ones have warned the US that the plan should not deviate from the agreed upon parameters of two-states for two peoples.
The Trump administration has said it does not feel tied to those parameters.
@ Ted Belman:
Ted, you maybe right about perhaps Bibi is trying to pickoff some of Blue-White voters or worst case make it amenable for Labor to join what is mostly a right-wing coalition, assuming they pass the thresh-hold.
So it does appear that the 700 units of Arab Housing is likely tied to Trumps Peace Plan. (It appears Bibi knows the plan.)
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/266722
If this is some clever ploy of Bibi it is very opaque at this point.
Criteria of what was approved are at http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/266715
Guess all these nices to the sodomites is the road to becoming thr next u n gen sect.
Anything for a cheap vote
We need to annex so those of us living in Area C and other parts of Judea and Samaria will not have to keep living in limbo. I will give my usual Likud vote to any party who promises to annex Judea and Samaria, or at least area C. The Arabs who call themselves Palestinians need to be encouraged to leave, not to take over Judea and Samaria.
@ YESHAYAHU HOLLANDER:You could be correct that presenting this in the Security Cabinet and the negative noise generated may be a ploy tell Kushner when visits that this building for Arabs in Area C is simply not politically viable unless you want me to lose, which we know Trump would not like.
@ YESHAYAHU HOLLANDER:
First it was reported that the building was approved by the Cabinet. Later Gideon Saar said, I do not know what was said in the Cabinet meeting but NO decision was made.
@ Ted Belman:
This seems to me to be a win-win ploy of the brilliant Netanyahu, as folllows:
Netanyahu is fearful that he will not have a strong enough Right, and perhaps will have either make a coalition with Ganz etc. or to submit to political blackmail especially by Liberman.
He can avoid this ONLY IF the Right is strong enough, OR Likud is strong enough.
This “plan” frightens – besides angering – so many people on the Right, that they will assure they have a strong enough representation in the Knesset to “force” Netanyahu [to do exactly] what he intends to do.
Second, IF this plan is part of the “DEAL of the Century”, he already has presented it and, since it has NOT been approved, this may prevent the DEAL from being presented.
WIN-WIN for Netanyahu
@ Bear Klein:
From what I heard his suggestion was NOT approved.
@ Ted Belman:
Makes no sense Ted. Centrist voters while losing Right Wing voters who may vote for the new “Unified Right” (Shaked) or another right wing party in lieu of Likud. Then Smotrich gave Bibi cover by voting for this plan.
I sure hope their is something below the surface that we are not privy to making this worthwhile. Like Building the 6000 Jewish homes, slow slow slow walking the Arab building. Bibi also recently said he was going to destroy no Arab Homes but I hope this does NOT mean the illegal ones or terrorist homes.
Is this cover because he plans to apply Israeli Civil Law to Area C? I sure hope there something we are not seeing or otherwise this is a bad decision.
Basically we are in a zero sum conflict with the Arabs for the land in Judea/Samaria why would we give the Arabs permanent homes?
Why would Bibi do that now on the eve of elections. Could it be that he wants to attract centrist voters to Likud?
Bibi as Defense Minister could have approved the building by himself. Yet he took it the Security Cabinet to get approval. This was political cover. They gave it to him. Even Smotrich the supposed Right Winger. I guess he is hoping to be a minister after the next elections again so he layed down.
To but it mildly I am very disappointed that they approving Arab building before destroying the illegal structures. Did they discuss the illegal Arab structures in Area C? I hope Bibi promised to destroy those in turn for approving building plans which I also hope will not come to fruition.
Guess this is what happens when you kid yourself Israel is a democracy and not a dictatorship as proven by nutunyahoo time and time again.
When one has a final say against the majority then welcome to the nutunyahoo family business.