From the Liveblog of
Sunday, July 28, 2024
MK pans Russian parliament for condemning Knesset rejection of Palestinian state
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"
New Hope MK Ze’ev Elkin condemns the Duma, Russia’s parliament, after it releases a statement claiming that a Knesset resolution rejecting the establishment of a Palestinian state “blatantly violates the principles and norms of international law that constitute the basis for a Middle East settlement.”
The Knesset on July 18 voted overwhelmingly to pass the resolution ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to the United States.
According to the Duma, which is widely seen as a rubber stamp for Russia’s authoritarian President Vladimir Putin, “such an unlawful position defended by radical circles of the Israeli authorities contradicts not only the expectations of a significant part of Israeli society, but also the spirit of the Oslo Accords signed earlier by Israel.”
Elkin, who grew up in Soviet Ukraine, responds in a statement: “After the terrible massacre of October 7, the absolute majority of the Israeli public and the absolute majority of the representatives of the Knesset understand that the State of Israel cannot afford to establish a Hamas terrorist state in the heart of Israel.
“The one authorized to decide on the future and security of the State of Israel is the Israeli parliament and not the parliament in Moscow. I would suggest that the members of the Russian Parliament initiate a debate to consider the question of how, after all the crimes against humanity that Hamas committed on October 7, the official Russian leadership still receives the leaders of Hamas with the honor of kings in Moscow as welcome and honored guests.”
