MKs Yigal Guetta (Shas) and Bezalel Smotrich (Jewish Home) on Saturday night blasted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's announcement that construction of 42 housing units in Kiryat Arba was approved in response to Thursday's attack in which Hallel Yaffa Ariel was murdered.
The reason for the criticism is that the planned housing is actually an old tender that was frozen for political reasons, and Netanyahu has now approved it and republished it.
"Netanyahu will build 42 housing units in Har Hevron, just as he brought the tank of the missing soldiers from Sultan Yaacoub," Guetta said mockingly. “It's all a sham. The tank isn't the right tank and the apartments are already under construction. He thinks everyone is stupid.”
MK Smotrich said that “this system under which there is a construction freeze and after a serious attack they recycle some old tender is simply a disgrace. It is time to return to regular construction. Anything else gives a prize to terrorism and only encourages it.”
The Yesha Council also attacked Netanyahu and said, “This is not an appropriate response to terrorism but a mockery, this limited approval of contruction is not a change in trend. Along with the military operations in Hevron must also come a strong Zionist settlement through the real approval of thousands of housing units and by promoting the development of new infrastructure in the region."
“Only such a move would constitute an appropriate Zionist response to terrorism,” added the Yesha Council.