Arutz-7\'s Haggai Segal asked Yesha Council spokesman Yehoshua Mor-Yosef: \"You guys generally have good sources, what do you know about these rumors of an Israeli consent to a Palestinian state?\" Mor-Yosef responded,
\"When we first heard yesterday that there might be a deal regarding a declaration, we rushed to find out directly from the Prime Minister. Sharon denied any involvement, attributing it to Peres to some extent, but emphasizing that he is not bound by what Peres does. But the truth is that despite Sharon\'s denial, we are fairly apprehensive. We know that Omri Sharon (the Prime Minister\'s son) is in New York, and he was even quoted as saying that the Sharon-Peres combination is able to make \'hard decisions\' - a phrase which does not refer to a military action…\"
Regarding public protest, Mor-Yosef said that although the Council sponsored a major demonstration only three weeks ago in Jerusalem, \"it looks like it\'s time for us to start a new protest campaign, but with a different twist. Last time, we specifically refrained from criticizing Sharon, because it was soon after the murder of Gandhi, plus the army had just made its strongest offensive to date with its entry into the six PA-controlled cities. Now, though, we know exactly what that operation did and did not accomplish, and it\'s time for us to deliver a much stronger message to the government: Stop trying to catch mosquitoes - let\'s rather dry up the swamp altogether; as long as Arafat is here, there will be terrorism.\"
He said that the new protest campaign will be similar to a campaign held under the Barak government, whereby the population of one or two Yesha towns arrive en masse, for two or three days at a time, and set up a protest encampment outside the Prime Minister\'s Office. \"Some communities from the Shomron will probably be the first to arrive, later this week,\" Mor-Yosef said.
\"When we first heard yesterday that there might be a deal regarding a declaration, we rushed to find out directly from the Prime Minister. Sharon denied any involvement, attributing it to Peres to some extent, but emphasizing that he is not bound by what Peres does. But the truth is that despite Sharon\'s denial, we are fairly apprehensive. We know that Omri Sharon (the Prime Minister\'s son) is in New York, and he was even quoted as saying that the Sharon-Peres combination is able to make \'hard decisions\' - a phrase which does not refer to a military action…\"
Regarding public protest, Mor-Yosef said that although the Council sponsored a major demonstration only three weeks ago in Jerusalem, \"it looks like it\'s time for us to start a new protest campaign, but with a different twist. Last time, we specifically refrained from criticizing Sharon, because it was soon after the murder of Gandhi, plus the army had just made its strongest offensive to date with its entry into the six PA-controlled cities. Now, though, we know exactly what that operation did and did not accomplish, and it\'s time for us to deliver a much stronger message to the government: Stop trying to catch mosquitoes - let\'s rather dry up the swamp altogether; as long as Arafat is here, there will be terrorism.\"
He said that the new protest campaign will be similar to a campaign held under the Barak government, whereby the population of one or two Yesha towns arrive en masse, for two or three days at a time, and set up a protest encampment outside the Prime Minister\'s Office. \"Some communities from the Shomron will probably be the first to arrive, later this week,\" Mor-Yosef said.