Deputy Minister Ofir Akunis
Deputy Minister Ofir AkunisFlash 90

Deputy Minister Ofir Akunis (Likud) warned on Monday that a “two-state solution” will endanger the security of Israeli residents and will bring rockets and missiles to the heart of the country.

Akunis’s comments came in a meeting with Likud members in the Sharon region city of Kfar Saba.

"This year, we learned what we had already known - that withdrawals do not promote peace but rather advance war," he said, referring to the recent Operation Protective Edge in Gaza.

"Many understand today what we said long ago: the establishment of a Palestinian state will come at the expense of the security of Israeli citizens,” said Akunis.

"If we make the mistake of withdrawing from Judea and Samaria, tunnels will be dug towards Kfar Saba and mortars will be intercepted over the Ben Gurion Airport. Wise people learn from past mistakes and do not repeat them,” he concluded.

Akunis’s comments came as hundreds of Likud members took part in a meeting of the party's Central Committee in Ashkelon, where they passed a party proposal obligating the toppling the Hamas terrorist organization in Gaza in the next counter-terror operation.

The statement refers to the perceived lack of decisive military action in Operation Protective Edge, the third such operation in Gaza, which ended with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu sealing a ceasefire with Hamas that coincided with a nose-dive in his approval ratings.

Netanyahu himself was absent at the meeting Monday, instead taking part in a meeting of Likud activists in Petah Tikva that he arranged to conflict with the Central Committee meeting so as not to be present.