Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is under intense pressure from Washington to extend the settlement building moratorium, with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demanding it should continue ahead of talks which began today in Sharm el-Sheikh. On the home front, Likud Ministers and members of Knesset have started to publicly pressure Netanyahu to keep his word on ending the freeze as scheduled on Sept. 26. Four Likud MKs have reportedly threatened to vote against the upcoming state budget if the freeze is extended. Israel National News spoke with one of those four, MK Danny Danon.
INN: What's your position on the freeze?
MK Danon: The moratorium was a poor decision and I told the Prime Minister 10 months ago that it would be very hard to continue to build after the freeze. He assured me and my colleagues that it was only a temporary decision. Today, as the date approaches, you hear more and more ministers and members of Knesset putting pressure on the Prime Minister to keep to his to words.
INN: We are hearing reports that the Prime Minister is considering a partial freeze as a compromise. Should that be an option?
MK Danon: I would not accept any partial freeze. It is unacceptable and the Prime Minister knows that. What is important for me is whether or not there will be a decision of the Cabinet to extend the freeze by Sept. 26. If there is no decision, the freeze ends. If there will be such decision, I will fight it with all my power.
INN: What is your stance on talks which could lead to giving up parts of the land of Israel and putting other parts in a security danger?
MK Danon: We feel that the Prime Minister knows that there is no partner for peace in Abu Mazen, but that he is still playing the game, and does not really believe a deal can be reached. I think that the manner in which it is being carried out and the language that [Netanyahu] used is not in the Likud way, and if anyone thinks that in a year you can finalize the conflict, that is wrong.
INN: At what point would you consider leaving the Likud or the government due to the talks?
MK Danon: I would not consider leaving the Likud. Whoever betrays the policy of the Likud must leave. A leader who chooses a new direction should leave the party. We are trying to put pressure on the PM to stay true to the Likud principles.
INN: Has Prime Minister Netanyahu changed his position regarding a Palestinian state? Can he be relied on to lead the country?
MK Danon: We all want to think that nothing has happened and to ignore the reality, but there was his [Netanyahu's] Bar Ilan speech [where he declared support for a demilitarized Palestinian State] and the freeze. We all know that Abu Mazen spoke with Olmert without a freeze, and Yasser Arafat spoke with Ehud Barak without a freeze. We need to make sure he [Netanyahu] is strong to help him stay loyal to the platform.
INN: Is the PM communicating with you and other party members on his strategy?
MK Danon: There is communication going back and forth between us and the Prime Minister's people. They hear the voices of the Likud members. We have many ministers telling him [Netanyahu] you cannot extend the freeze. I have told him that myself, the last time I spoke with him. He assured me to wait and see that we will continue to build. But now we hear the remarks of the Prime Minister to find a compromise between our claims and the White House claim.
INN: Do you ever want to see peace talks take place?
MK Danon: You need to find a partner. We see that Abu Mazen has no control. We need to be very realistic. When there will be a real leadership, then we can negotiate. I prefer not to play a game of wishful thinking in order to satisfy the White House.
MK Danon called on supporters of the Land of Israel to join him on Sept. 26, when the freeze is scheduled to expire:
"I want to invite whoever is in Israel to join me on Sept 26. We will hold a massive gathering in the Shomron [Samaria] when we will mark the renewal of the building. It is organized by World Likud, and the Council of the Shomron. Thousands of Likud supporters will arrive from all parts of the country, and at 4 p.m. we will gather in the town of Revava, where we will hold a ceremony with mayor and leaders of the Likud to mark the end of the freeze. Building will begin immediately afterwards in Revava and all over Judea and Samaria."