From the Liveblog of
Thursday, November 21, 2024
Blaming PA for ICC decision, Smotrich calls for sanctioning it into oblivion
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich calls on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to level sanctions against the Palestinian Authority in the wake of the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue arrest warrants against the premier and former defense minister Yoav Gallant.
“The PA, which consistently works to undermine the existence of the State of Israel and harm us in the international arena, is not a partner for peace; it is a burden to which an end must be put,” Smotrich declares, demanding “painful sanctions on the PA and its leaders to the point of its collapse.”
“We will not allow a hostile, hypocritical and illegitimate body to harm our leaders and fighters,” weighs in Defense Minister Israel Katz.
Yuli Edelstein, the chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee warns that the court’s decision ” sets a dangerous precedent, which could lead, during the next stage, to arrest warrants against our excellent soldiers and officers.”
