Lapid: Diplomacy with Palestinian Authority is only way to end Hamas rule in Gaza

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid says the only way to prevent Hamas rule in Gaza and to bring about regional security is to take part in a wider diplomatic deal with regional players, including the Palestinian Authority.

“Anyone who saw hundreds of thousands of Gazans yesterday crossing the Netzarim Corridor and returning to the northern Strip understands that the war is over,” Lapid tells a conference in Tel Aviv organized by the Commanders for Israel’s Security group. “If Israel doesn’t set out on a major diplomatic process, Hamas will simply return to rule Gaza, and we will miss out on a historic opportunity.”

However, he says, “in this Netanyahu government it won’t happen,” in large part because the prime minister has stated a refusal to “accept that the Palestinian Authority” will play a role in Gaza. Lapid says without PA involvement in the Strip, “the Saudis, Emiratis, Egyptians, Jordanians won’t be involved.”

Lapid warns that the Trump administration “can make a deal with the Saudis without us… if the government of Israel won’t be at the table, they’ll write a side memo on the Israeli-Palestinian issue and put it in a drawer. This is a very bad idea, this would be to miss out on all the potential of the Trump administration.”

This government’s “refusal to involve the PA in Gaza leads to one thing — Hamas remains the ruler in Gaza, because if there is no alternative it will only perpetuate Hamas rule.”