MK Tzachi Hanegbi (Likud) spoke to Arutz Sheva on Tuesday, a day after taking part in a special Selichot event in the Kfar Hashiloach neighborhood of Jerusalem.
Commenting on the pressure exerted on Israel to prevent the return of Jews to Kfar Hashiloach, Hanegbi said, "There were years when a great effort was made by the Palestinians to deter Jews from exercising their right to be anywhere in the Israeli capital. I opened the Temple Mount for Jews in 2003 after Arafat dictated that no Jew will set foot on the Temple Mount or in Kfar Hashiloach, an old Jewish neighborhood from the end of the 19th century."
"Their efforts were manifested mainly in terrorism, attempted intimidation and legal proceedings, usually involving Jews who are harnessed in favor of our enemy, but fortunately neither the government nor the courts prevented the return of Jews to their homes," he added.
Hanegbi was asked what makes the difference between the past ability to withstand Palestinian pressure and the current reality, and replied, “They are trying to force leaders in Israel to feel that they are not right and their opponents are right and then their minds are reluctant to make the right decisions. This is how it is in the Shimon Hatzaddik neighborhood, where weakness is being shown.”
He brought as an example the Ministry for Settlement Affairs, in which he served in the previous government.
"This government is drying up this ministry. It does not appoint a minister but does not close the ministry either because they are ashamed since they themselves demanded that there be such a ministry. They do not appoint a minister or a CEO and do not allocate resources. Today the Minister of Settlement Affairs is Naftali Bennett and we have seen Prime Ministers who know how to run more complex ministries like the Ministry of Defense, but here they are deliberately leaving this ministry to languish because the question is about resources. When there is no one who fights for resources, there will not be any."
On the planned approval for the construction of hundreds of housing units for Palestinian Arabs in Area C, Hanegbi said, "This is a disgrace. This is a reward for those who, over the years, have engaged in coordinated efforts with the international backing of EU organizations and other hostile elements such as the BDS, in an attempt to force the repeal of what was determined in the abominable Oslo Accords, which say that it is not permissible to build in Area C without a permit from the Civil Administration."
"We need to make sure that irreversible facts are not established on the ground. There are enough areas in Areas A and B where most of the Palestinian population lives and not at the expense of those homelands that we designate to be under Israeli sovereignty," he added.
"We need to make sure that irreversible facts are not established on the ground. There are enough areas in Areas A and B where most of the Palestinian population lives and not at the expense of those homelands that we designate to be under Israeli sovereignty."
Hanegbi was also asked about the prospect of a change of leadership in the Likud in the face of the calls from Knesset members such as Avi Dichter, Yuli Edelstein and others. Hanegbi replied that as a democratic party, this political uproar is legitimate and said that there are as many as ten Likud members who ran against Benjamin Netanyahu in the past and everyone, except Ariel Sharon, lost to him.
"Netanyahu won and even today his position in the movement is strong. We are a movement that allows the leader of the movement to be challenged. The day for primaries for the leadership will come and I will support Netanyahu. I will only run once Netanyahu is no longer there, but that will only happen in 7-8-9 years. But as long as he is around, healthy, strong and energetic and interested in it and also leading the opposition in full swing we need to strengthen him to become Prime Minister again. It's not for his sake.It’s for ours."