It’s Jerusalem Day in Israel and the newly elected Prime Minister just dropped the mic after making a statement on Jerusalem:
TIMES OF ISRAEL – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday vowed that Jerusalem would never be split in any peace deal with the Palestinians, and said construction throughout the capital would continue, despite international criticism.
In a Knesset speech marking Jerusalem Day, which was on Sunday, the prime minister goaded opposition leader Isaac Herzog to clarify his position vis-à-vis Jerusalem and concessions he would be willing to make to the Palestinians. The challenge prompted an angry response from Herzog, who maintained he would never divide Jerusalem, while accusing Netanyahu of calling its unified status into question.
“Jerusalem won’t be divided again,” Netanyahu said. “It won’t go back to being a frontier or a border town.”
The prime minister praised Israeli efforts to develop the capital, while conceding that “it doesn’t mean the unification is perfect.
“It doesn’t mean that there are no problems, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t tasks [ahead of us]. There is a lot to perfect, and a lot to improve, but we will not go backwards.”
Netanyahu said that, with regard to Jerusalem, “I have a clear position — we build in Jerusalem.
“We don’t build to clash with the international community, we do this responsibly and judiciously because this is our natural right,” he continued.
Not only did he drop the mic, he dropped it on the heads of the fakestanians and they are outraged:
Palestinian officials from across the political spectrum expressed outrage on Monday over a statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Jerusalem will not be divided under any political outcome.
“There shall never be peace or stability in the Middle East without East Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state,” Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for PA President Mahmoud Abbas, told the official Palestinian news agency Wafa. “This is a clear indication that the coming stage will be one of massive political confrontation … we will resort to all international fora to put an end to this destructive policy.”
From Gaza, Hamas joined the Palestinian Authority in criticizing the Prime Minister’s statements, only to bash its stated agenda of diplomatic negotiations.
“Talk of negotiations with the occupation is nothing but a waste of time,” said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri in a press statement Monday. “The Oslo group should acknowledge the failure of this option and turn to the national consensus surrounding a program of resistance and national principles.”
I’m sure the Muslim regimes in Turkey and the US will be expressing their outrage shortly. Stay Tuned.