A Likud Central Committee debate on the building freeze in Judea and Samaria scheduled for Thursday has been postponed. MK Danny Danon, who planned the event, agreed to push it off - on condition that a meeting is held at some point within the next 30 days.
Danon predicted that the Likud Central Committee would not support the construction freeze. “There's no doubt that a decision to keep building in Judea and Samaria would win support from the central committee,” he said.
Danon suggested that the reason Netanyahu asked to postpone the meeting was because of American pressure over planned construction in the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood of Jerusalem. The MK expressed understanding for Netanyahu's plight, saying, “In recent days the prime minister is in a battle over our eternal right to Jerusalem. I have agreed to hold the meeting at a different time due to the pressure he's facing.”
Earlier on Sunday, MK Miri Regev (Likud) also backed Netanyahu's request, saying, “At the current time, this debate is likely to harm Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria, and to cause a deterioration in our relationship with America, which is a true friend to Israel.”
Regev has previously expressed opposition to the Judea and Samaria building freeze.
Netanyahu's official reason for postponing the meeting was his busy schedule. The prime minister is scheduled to take trips to the United States and Europe later this month.