Netanyahu Says Israel Will Withstand ‘International Pressure

At his weekly cabinet meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had strong words for the international community, saying, “We are not prepared to repeat the same mistake of a unilateral withdrawal and withdrawals that, in effect, led Hamas to take control of Gaza.” Israel “will [...] withstand the international pressure,” he pledged, also placing blame for Israel’s current situation on international pressure “were it not for which, we would not have reached this point.”

“I have always been astonished at the delusions of others who are prepared to continue this process and call it peace. You would hand over more territory, in this case in Judea and Samaria that controls Israel’s cities, to the same people and the result, of course, will be a Gaza on the outskirts of Tel Aviv, Hadera and Kfar Saba,” he said.

“Today, this is what is required from leadership in Israel – to have no illusions, to stand up for the vital interests of the State of Israel and to rebuff the pressure to bring Gaza into every home in Israel.”

Netanyahu was responding to Hamas terror chief Khaled Meshal’s statement Saturday that “Palestine from the river to the sea, from the north to the south, is our land and we will never give up one inch or any part of it.”

Meshal also reiterated Hamas’s policy of terror. “Jihad and armed resistance are the right and real way to liberate Palestine and restore our rights.”

Meshal was in Gaza for the first time over the weekend to celebrate Hamas’s 25th anniversary and its recent claimed military “victory” over Israel.

Netanyahu said of Meshal’s statement that Hamas “have no intention of compromising with us; they want to destroy the state. They will fail, of course; in the annals of the history of our people, we – the Jewish People – have overcome such enemies.”

“We want a true peace with our neighbors. But we will not close our eyes and stick our heads in the sand,” he said.

Netanyahu also had harsh words for PA President Mahmoud Abbas saying, “it is interesting that Abu Mazen has issued no condemnation, not of the remarks about the destruction of Israel, just as previously he did not condemn the missiles that were fired at Israel. To my regret, he strives for unity with the same Hamas that is supported by Iran.”