Envoy hits back at UN chief for calling Netanyahu video ‘outrageous’
Israeli ambassador to UN says Ban Ki-moon’s assertion that settlements are obstacle to peace presents ‘a distorted view’
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
The Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon hit back at UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Thursday for his criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over a recent video in which Netanyahu said that Palestinians seek the “ethnic cleansing” of Jews from the West Bank.
Ban had called Netanyahu’s remarks disturbing, and his portrayal of “those who oppose settlement expansion as supporters of ethnic cleansing” as “outrageous and unacceptable.” The UN chief also reiterated the UN position that settlement expansion in the West Bank were an obstacle to peace.
Danon said Ban’s remarks on the situation, in a speech before the UN Security Council, presented “a distorted view of the situation.”
“The obstacle to peace starts and ends with Palestinian incitement to terrorism and [Palestinian Authority President] Mahmoud Abbas’s refusal to meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu,” Danon said in a statement issued to the press.
“Instead of directly condemning Hamas and its building of terror tunnels, and instead of investing time and resources in ensuring that the Palestinians end their incitement, the secretary general chooses to condemn Israel on a regular basis.”
In his wide-ranging remarks earlier, Ban had also criticized Palestinians for what he said was the “glorification of terror.”
“I continue to be appalled that Palestinian parties choose to praise despicable acts, such as the 1972 terrorist attack against Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics. The glorification of terror is disgraceful and the Palestinian leadership must put an end to it,” he said.
The UN chief also said he was concerned by the recent cancellation of planned local elections in the Palestinian territories, and condemned the firing of a rocket from Gaza into Israel.
On Wednesday, Ban also expressed disapproval with the video, which was posted by Netanyahu’s office late last week.
In the clip, Netanyahu asked whether people in other parts of the world would accept demands for the removal of a specific ethnic group in their own countries, saying Palestinians were demanding that no Jews be allowed to reside in their territory.
I'm sure many of you have heard the claim that Jewish communities in Judea Samaria, the West Bank, are an obstacle to peace.I've always been perplexed by this notion.Because no one would seriously claim that the nearly two million Arabs living inside Israel – that they're an obstacle to peace. That's because they aren't. On the contrary.Israel's diversity shows its openness and readiness for peace. Yet the Palestinian leadership actually demands a Palestinian state with one pre-condition: No Jews.There's a phrase for that: It's called ethnic cleansing.And this demand is outrageous.It's even more outrageous that the world doesn't find this outrageous. Some otherwise enlightened countries even promote this outrage.Ask yourself this: Would you accept ethnic cleansing in your state? A territory without Jews, without Hispanics, without blacks?Since when is bigotry a foundation for peace?At this moment, Jewish schoolchildren in Judea Samaria are playing in sandboxes with their friends.Does their presence make peace impossible?I don’t think so.I think what makes peace impossible is intolerance of others. Societies that respect all people are the ones that pursue peace. Societies that demand ethnic cleansing don't pursue peace.I envision a Middle East where young Arabs and young Jews learn together, work together, live together side by side in peace.Our region needs more tolerance, not less.So the next time you hear someone say Jews can't live somewhere, let alone in their ancestral homeland, take a moment to think of the implications.Ethnic cleansing for peace is absurd.It's about time somebody said it.I just did.
Posted by Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו on Friday, September 9, 2016
It’s “outrageous that the world doesn’t find it outrageous,” Netanyahu said, urging viewers to ask themselves whether they would accept “a territory without Jews, without Hispanics, without blacks” in their nation. “Since when is bigotry a foundation for peace?” he asked.
The Obama administration last week described the comments as “inappropriate.”
“We believe that using that type of terminology is inappropriate and unhelpful,” State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said.
The video also drew angry denunciations from Israeli Arabs and Palestinian leaders, with PA President Mahmoud Abbas accusing Israel of carrying out ethnic cleansing.
Israel began building settlements in the West Bank after it captured the territory, previously controlled by Jordan, in the 1967 Six Day War. Today, over 350,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts and another 200,000 in East Jerusalem, which Israel considers part of its territory.
The international community considers Israeli building in the West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal. Jerusalem argues the status of West Bank settlements is subject to a final peace deal with the Palestinians.
The Times of Israel Community.