Tzipi Hotovely
Tzipi HotovelyArutz Sheva

By destroying Jewish homes in Judea and Samaria, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is ultimately destroying the foundations of his own Likud party, MK Tzipi Hotovely, also of Likud, warned Sunday. Hotovely wrote a letter to Netanyahu reminding him that not all Likud lawmakers support the demolitions – and warning that further destruction could mean a rift in Likud lines.

At a time when the state builds with one hand and destroys with the other, Likud MKs must remind Netanyahu “that we are not your soldiers in the service of demolition,” Hotovely told Arutz Sheva.

She warned against putting the blame on Defense Minister Ehud Barak, saying, “The responsibility lies with the person in charge.”

Hotovely accused the government of attempting to hide behind the Supreme Court, when in reality, the government could easily appease the court by agreeing to legalize unauthorized buildings. The buildings facing destruction were not built on privately owned land, she noted, but rather on state land, meaning they can easily be given official status.

She rejected attempts to brand those who built homes without authorization as lawbreakers, noting that the municipal and other official processes that preceded their arrival were all carried out legally. The issue of the homes’ status “is a political issue” not a legal one, she declared.

Netanyahu is already facing trouble within his coalition, said Hotovely, as evidenced by his recent difficulties in gaining approval for the Trajtenberg report. The last thing he needs is a political dispute within his own party, and for that reason, he would do better to find legal solutions for unauthorized Jewish homes rather than destroy them, she stated.

Likud MKs need not fear that rejecting Netanyahu’s policies will lead to a split in the party similar to the one that formed Kadima, Hotovely added. It is now clear to everyone that negotiations with the Palestinian Authority have reached a dead end, she explained, therefore the party is unlikely to split for the sake of a new diplomatic initiative.