Binyamin Netanyahu
Binyamin NetanyahuFlash 90

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu addressed the controversial Jewish State Law on Sunday, hailing the proposal during his weekly Cabinet meeting.

"Israel is a Jewish and democratic state," he said. "Democracy here finds expression in the right of every person to vote in secret elections. It finds expression in Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty, which promises full individual rights in a manner that is unprecedented anywhere in the very large region around us.

"The Jewish aspect of the state finds expression in its being the one and only national state of the Jewish People, with a flag, national anthem and the right of the Jewish People to come here," Netanyahu added. "The balance between these two facets is necessary, both to balance our judicial system, which certainly recognizes the democratic aspect, and now needs to also recognize the aspect of our being the national state of the Jewish people."

"We welcome today the nation-state bill, which should bring this balance," he continued. "It will need a lot of changes made to it and a lot of hearings on it, but basically, it should be clear that Israel is the national homeland of the Jewish people - on the provision of equal rights for all its citizens." 

Netanyahu also addressed a different set of rights: the right to security - and to deter Palestinian terrorism. 

"We have called for calm and the quiet return to security, for an end to incitement and violence," Netanyahu thundered, referring to meetings with US Secretary of State John Kerry and Jordan's King Abdullah II on the security situation. 

"You cannot stop the violence if you do not stop the incitement that leads to violence," he said, calling on Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to "immediately stop this propaganda."

Netanyahu's remarks surface after Abbas blamed Israel for the ongoing rioting in Jerusalem on Saturday, during a visit with the German Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier.