Erekat: Bennett not alone in dismissing two-state plan

Chief Palestinian Authority negotiator Saeb Erekat said Economics Minister Naftali Bennett was not alone in his opposition to a Palestinian state, and that the Israeli government has “officially pronounced the death of the two-state solution.”

Bennett said Monday that the idea of a Palestinian state has run its course and Israel must seek another solution to the conflict with the Palestinians. He suggested that the conflict with the Palestinians was analogous to shrapnel that could not be dislodged from the Land of Israel, and that a two-state solution would permanently hobble the country, making annexation the lesser of two evils.

Erekat said in response that Bennett’s statements weren’t extraordinary but rather had become the norm.

“Statements by senior Israeli officials against a Palestinian state are not isolated incidents; they are proof of the government’s radical positions,” he said in an interview on Army Radio.

“Bennett is not the only one who opposes a solution. There is also [Defense Minister Moshe] Ya’alon, there is [Deputy Foreign Minister Ze’ev] Elkin, there is also [Deputy Defense Minister Danny] Danon and there is [Tourism Minister Uzi] Landau,” he said.

Erekat called on the international community to “take stock of the reality and understand that the Israeli government is trying to scuttle the United States’ efforts to renew negotiations.” Addressing Israeli politicians, he asked, “What do you offer your people… the future… your grandchildren?” 

On Monday, Erekat was quoted by the Palestinian Wafa news agency saying that “within the past few days, several high-ranking Israeli officials, from the ministries of foreign affairs, defense, and religious affairs, have made clear statements regarding their position to actively work against the internationally endorsed two-state solution on the 1967 border.”

Erekat charged that “these are not isolated events but a reaffirmation of political platforms and radical beliefs. Israel has officially declared the death of the two-state solution.”

He further stated that the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was “not serious about peace,” but rather only interested in a public relations campaign.

Netanyahu distanced himself from Bennett’s comments on Monday, saying that the senior minister’s opinions were his own and not representative of the government, which the prime minister said was committed to the two-state solution.