PM says he rejected Trump overtures that ‘harmed our basic rights’

Netanyahu tells lawmakers that he rejected proposals by the Trump administration that “harm our basic rights,” hinting the new US administration is sticking to decades-old peace-making formulas.

At a Knesset event marking 50 years since the capture of the West Bank and Jordan Valley during the Six Day War, Netanyahu stresses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is “not a territorial dispute” but is rather an attempt by the Palestinians to “destroy a country.”

The prime minister says that “50 years of propaganda” to the international community on the root of the conflict will not quickly be unraveled.

“We’ve made some strides, but there is a long way to go,” he says of efforts by Israel to change the narrative.

“And therefore, even when we went through difficult changes — and we got through them together — here we are still facing this problem; even when governments change, even when a new administration enters. I will not detail here what ideas were raised, those who need to know, know. And we did not accept things that would have harmed our basic rights and essential matters.”

— Marissa Newman