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Bennett: Under Trump, Israel can ‘reset’ Middle East

November 14, 2016 at 3:00 pm

Donald Trump’s election as the next US president presents Israel with a unique opportunity to recast its Middle East policies, far-right Israeli MK Naftali Bennett said today.

Leader of the religious-nationalist Jewish Home party and a staunch proponent of Israeli settlement building, Bennett said it was now up to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to communicate to the US administration and the world what he wanted and push for it.

Referring to his own past as a high-tech entrepreneur, Bennett said not making the goals clear would result in failure.

“The combination of changes in the United States, in Europe and in the region provide Israel with a unique opportunity to reset and rethink everything,” Bennett said.

“We have a chance to reset the structure across the Middle East. We have to seize that opportunity and act on it.”

Relying on “old paths”, he said, would be a mistake.

Immediately after Trump’s victory, Bennett declared that the two-state solution was effectively dead.

“Trump’s victory is an opportunity for Israel to immediately retract the notion of a Palestinian state,” he said. “The era of a Palestinian state is over.”

He wouldn’t reiterate that point today, but did say “it’s no secret that I think the idea of setting up a Palestinian state in the heart of Israel is a mistake.”