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Netanyahu to Europeans: Stop Rewarding Palestinian Intransigence

(Prime Minister's Office) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Foreign Press Corps on Wednesday: The decision of the European court in Luxembourg on Hamas, the resolution of the EU Parliament in Brussels on Palestinian statehood, and the call from Switzerland to investigate Israel for supposed violations of the Geneva Convention all point to a spirit of appeasement in Europe of the very forces that threaten Europe itself. I know that some in Europe say that they are frustrated with the situation in the Middle East. We in Israel are frustrated too. We are frustrated that our Palestinian neighbors refuse to recognize the right of the Jewish people to a state of their own at the time that they're asking for us to recognize their right to have one. We're frustrated that our Palestinian neighbors continue to incite against Jews and the Jewish state, creating a climate of hatred and violence. We're frustrated that they refuse to negotiate seriously about our legitimate security concerns. Removing the terrorist designation of Hamas is a grave mistake. Hamas is a ruthless terrorist organization with a proven track record of brutal terror attacks against innocent civilians, and not only Israelis: hundreds of Palestinians have been murdered by them. Just this year, Hamas kidnapped and murdered three Israeli teenagers. It launched thousands of rocket attacks indiscriminately at our children, at our civilians. Does Europe hold the Palestinian leadership accountable for its coddling of extremism? Does it demand that the Palestinian Authority break its signed pact with Hamas? Does Europe call for an end to outrageous official Palestinian incitement against Jews and the Jewish state? The sad truth is that Europe is largely silent on these questions and when it raises its voice, it's typically in the other direction. Why should the Palestinian leadership demonstrate responsible behavior if its extremist behavior is rewarded time and again by European parliaments? Parliamentary recognitions do nothing to advance peace. These declarations merely reinforce Palestinian intransigence, pushing peace further away. Instead of rewarding Palestinian intransigence, the European democracies should support the one and only democracy in the Middle East - the State of Israel.
2014-12-18 00:00:00
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