Palestinian Authoirty head Mahmoud Abbas. (Flash90)
Terror attacks committed against Israelis are the same as those committed against any other target, Netanyahu stressed, and called on the world to condemn acts of terrorism against Israelis just as they condemn them elsewhere.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu challenged Palestinian Authority (PA) head Mahmoud Abbas to condemn terror attacks committed against Israelis by Palestinians just as Abbas did after the string of Islamic terror attacks in Paris on Saturday.
Speaking at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu equated the terror attacks in Paris with the Palestinian terror attack on Friday in which a father, Rabbi Ya’akov Litman, and his son Netanel were murdered in front of the rest of the family. “Mere hours after the murder was perpetrated near Otniel, terrorists set out on a vicious assault in Paris and murdered innocent people. In Israel, as in France, terrorism is terrorism and standing behind it is radical Islam and its desire to destroy its victims,” said Netanyahu.
He called on the world again to condemn terror attacks against Israelis as they do when they are committed against Parisians. “The time has come for the world to wake up and unite in order to defeat terrorism. The time has come for countries to condemn terrorism against us to the same degree that they condemn terrorism everywhere else in the world.”
He then challenged Abbas to condemn acts of terrorism against Israelis. “It would be proper for Abu Mazen, who condemned the attack in France yesterday, to condemn ruthless terrorism against innocent people in Israel and fight the incitement that motivates it.”
Abbas expressed his solidarity and sympathy with France after the attacks that claimed 129 lives, saying “he stood by the French government and citizens in the face of terrorism,” and adding that “the international community was responsible for confronting terrorist actions.” However, he failed to condemn the multiple terror attacks carried out by Palestinians against Israelis in the past two months that have claimed 14 Israeli lives and wounded dozens.
Terror in Israel and Around the World – The Same
Netanyahu again drew a parallel between terror in Israel and France, saying they are both unjustified and none should be rationalized. “We should remember – we are not to blame for the terrorism directed against us, just as the French are not to blame for the terrorism directed against them. It is the terrorists who are to blame for terrorism, not the territories [contested areas in Judea and Samaria], not the settlements and not any other thing. It is the desire to destroy us that perpetuates this conflict and drives the murderous aggression against us.”
“The terrorists who attack us have the same murderous intent as those in Paris,” the premier said, lauding Israeli security forces for thwarting many Palestinian terror attacks against Israelis targets, thanks to Israel’s “aggressive policy” against terrorism.
By: Max Gelber, United with Israel