Daily Alert Archives

Israel Can Only Make Peace with Those Who Want to Make Peace

(Prime Minister's Office) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - Prime Minister Netanyahu told the Knesset Monday: The Middle East is changing rapidly and drastically. Hundreds of millions of people around us yearn for political freedom and are fighting to obtain these freedoms. It is very possible that in the long term, these changes will be for the best. But in the short term, our situation could possibly worsen. We saw what happened along the borders of Israel. Thousands thronged against our fences in an attempt to invade our territory and challenge our sovereignty. What were they yelling in Gaza? That they want to return to Jaffa. What were they crying in Syria? That they want to return to the Galilee. What did the leader of Hamas say? "We want to see the end of the Zionist agenda," the very same words used by his patrons in Iran. The root of this conflict never was a Palestinian state, or lack thereof. The root of the conflict is, and always has been, their refusal to recognize the Jewish state. It is not a conflict over 1967, but over 1948, over the very existence of the State of Israel. Sunday's events did not occur on June 5, the anniversary of the Six-Day War. They occurred on May 15, the day the State of Israel was established. The citizens of Israel are much more united than is commonly believed. There is consensus regarding the basic issues: The Palestinians must recognize the State of Israel as the national homeland of the Jewish people. The agreement between us must end the conflict and end the demands from the State of Israel. The problem of the Palestinian refugees will be resolved outside of Israel and not within its borders. A Palestinian state will only be established under a peace treaty that will not compromise the safety of Israel. This state must be demilitarized, with practical security arrangements, including long-term IDF presence along the Jordan River. We must maintain the settlement blocs. Many of us agree that the settlement blocs must remain inside the borders of the State of Israel. Jerusalem must remain the united and sovereign capital of the State of Israel. We can only make peace with those who want to make peace with us. Those who wish to obliterate us are no partners for peace. A Palestinian government with half its members declaring daily that they plan to annihilate the Jewish state is not a partner for peace.
2011-05-17 00:00:00
Full Article