Bennett calls for annexation after resolution

ANT KATZ

Bennett, pictured above, who is both a Cabinet minister and the head of the right-wing Jewish Home party, said in a statement on Sunday morning at the Kotel that “no resolution can change the fact that this land, Jerusalem, is our capital. And no people can be a conqueror in their own land. That’s why this resolution, like many of the earlier resolutions, will be thrown into the dustbin of history.”

He called on Israel to “re-evaluate its approach” of giving up territory and supporting the formation of a Palestinian state. “We thought this approach would gain us sympathy from the world,” he said. “But instead we got tens of thousands of missiles from Gaza, thousands of Israelis murdered on the streets and one condemnation after another,” Bennett said.

RIGHT: Minister Naftali Bennett

The Minister added that it is “time to decide between two alternatives: surrendering our land, or sovereignty. We’ve tried surrendering our land, it didn’t work; it is time for sovereignty.”

Aaron Kalman, adviser to Minister Bennett, told JR Online today that Bennett had told the gathering at the Kotel after UN Security Council Resolution 2334 was passed: “We’re standing here, in the city of Jerusalem, our eternal capital for 3 000 years.” Kalman said Bennett said that the UN had “passed a bad decision, to consider this land, our capital, conquered territory”.  

But, Bennett said, “no resolution can change the fact that this land, Jerusalem, is our capital. And no people can be a conqueror in their own land. That’s why this resolution, like many of the earlier resolutions, will be thrown into the dustbin of history.”

Kalman quoted Bennett as saying that, “thousands of terrorists in the world, from Berlin through Paris and New York take a lot of opportunity and happiness in this resolution… The same friends that conduct terror attacks in Berlin, that run over people, that use knives and bombs; that gave out candy,” (when the Twin Towers were destroyed).

“This is a historic day, which contains both danger and opportunity, I choose to see the opportunity.”

Bennett announced in the statement that he would take steps to apply Israeli law to Judea and Samaria, the Hebrew names for the areas of the West Bank.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called on lawmakers to not publicly discuss annexation, saying that President Barack Obama may have other actions prepared to take against Israel on the Palestinian issue before he leaves office in three weeks’ time.

Avigdor Lieberman calls an end to co-operation

Also on Sunday, Israel’s Defence Minister, Avigdor Lieberman, ordered the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) to stop co-operating with Palestinian officials.

He also called on the Co-ordinator for Government Activities in the Territories, the military division responsible for implementing Israel government policies in the West Bank, to halt all contact with Palestinian Authority officials and Palestinian civilians, ending co-operation on all political and civilian issues, the Times of Israel reported.

The IDF was, however, ordered to continue security co-operation.

Amir Peretz (who just one week ago announced his candidacy to head the Labour Party), which is part of the Zionist Union currently led by Labour Party head Isaac Herzog, presented a resolution to hold a vote of no-confidence in the current government in the Knesset yesterday. If passed, this would trigger the dissolution of the Knesset and lead to new elections.