Israel will block establishment of Palestinian state, Netanyahu says

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) speaks at the weekly cabinet meeting, inside the Western Wall [Al-Buraq Wall] tunnels of Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in Jerusalem, on May 21, 2023 [Kobi Gideon (GPO) / Handout) – Anadolu Agency]

Israel must block the path to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced yesterday.

“We are preparing for the period after Abu Mazen [Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas]. We need the Palestinian Authority. We must not allow it to collapse, and we do not want it to collapse,” Netanyahu was quoted by Kan as saying in a closed door meeting with the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Security Committee. “We are ready to help it economically,” he stressed.

Referring to the Palestinians’ hopes of establishing a sovereign state, Netanyahu reiterated that their ambitions “must be eliminated.”

The prime minister’s remarks came in response to a question asked by Israeli Knesset members about Tel Aviv’s ties to the PA. His statements also come as the Israeli government approved the expansion of illegal settlements in the West Bank.

Since entering office in January, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition has approved the promotion of more than 7,000 new housing units, most deep in the West Bank.

READ: Israel approves thousands of illegal building permits in West Bank

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