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Israel has ceased to uproot Israeli communities in exchange for a false promise of peace, Netanyahu declared.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed there will be no more uprooting of Israeli communities as part of any diplomatic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Netanyahu made the statement on Wednesday while addressing thousands who attended a ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of Israel’s presence in Judea, Samaria, the Golan Heights and the Jordan Valley.
“We have brought about magnificent settlement in Judea and Samaria that we are maintaining and strengthening – responsibly, wisely and persistently,” Netanyahu stated.
Judea and Samaria is home to 500,000 Israelis living in some 250 communities.
“I tell you clearly and before anything: There will be no more uprooting of communities in the Land of Israel. It is not just a question of links to the homeland, though it is certainly that, but first of all, that is not the way to make peace,” Netanyahu said, adding that the decision pertains to both Jews and Arabs.
In 2006, Israel uprooted several communities and evacuated 10,000 Israelis from the Gaza Strip and northern Samaria as part of a unilateral diplomatic move. The result was the subsequent rise of the Hamas terror organization in Gaza, which currently rules the Strip and is using the territory to launch rockets at the Jewish state and build and train a massive army to fight Israel.
Netanyahu stressed that the uprooting of communities for peace has proved to be a failed concept. “We did not receive peace; we received terror and missiles! We will not go back to this,” Netanyahu stressed.
“That [Israel’s evacuation of Gaza] was just the promo, that uprooting, to what is currently going on in the Middle East: Any area that falls to radical Islam becomes a base for destruction, violence and death,” Netanyahu explained, vowing that Israel “will not abandon our national home to danger. Instead we will strengthen the home, with momentum. When I say momentum I mean not just words but also momentum, movement.”
Judicial Controversy
The official and celebratory event did not pass without controversy.
High Court of Justice President Miriam Naor decided not to send an official representative of the judicial branch to the state ceremony.
Justice Neil Hendel was slated to have represented the judiciary at the ceremony. Following a petition filed by Israeli-Arab Member of Knesset (MK) Issawi Frej from the extreme-left Meretz political party, Naor said she reviewed her decision and decided Hendel would not attend the ceremony, claiming Israel’s presence in Judea and Samaria was “controversial.”
Her decision generated a public storm, with many public officials accusing her of utilizing her office to promote her left-wing politics.
By: United with Israel Staff
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