Israel: Part Itself from the Palestinians?

Ha'aretz is admittedly not the most reliable source but if one believes Barak Ravid's report on what Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told his cabinet two days ago, June 21, it has important implications. According to Ravid, he

surprised many of the participants in the weekly cabinet meeting Sunday when he embarked on a monologue praising the idea of parting from the Palestinians and in relinquishing portions of the West Bank. Netanyahu said the number of Palestinians and Jews between the Jordan River and the sea "is irrelevant" and that it's more important to "preserve a solid Jewish majority inside the State of Israel."

Ravid quotes him saying of the Palestinians: "I have no wish to annex them into Israel. I want to separate from them so that they will not be Israeli citizens. I am interested that there be a solid Jewish majority inside the State of Israel." He adds that prime ministerial aides "asked all those present in the room to avoid disseminating the details" because of their sensitivity, while the Prime Minister's Office "refused to respond to questions on the issue or provide any quotes about the statements."

Comment: I sympathize with this statement, having watched Lebanon fall apart because the Christians there had territorial ambitions and accordingly lost their majority. Land is an asset, all the more so when ancestral, but if it comes with resident enemies, it is not worth the price. (June 21, 2011)

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