Netanyahu: No plans to strike Syria
Netanyahu tells Likud faction meeting, 'There is no truth to hints that Israel is planning move against Damascus'; claims 'rumor' attempt by Iran, Hezbollah to distract international community from sanctions initiative
Speaking before Likud Knesset members on Monday, in the faction's first meeting of the summer session, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "There is no truth to hints that Israel is allegedly planning a move against Syria. I believe this is an attempt by Iran and Hezbollah to distract the international community from the sanctions being prepared against Iran."
"Iran is pushing forward with its race to obtain nuclear weapons," the prime minister said. "Consensus for sanctions against Iran is forming in the international community, but I don't see this happening in the coming month. I hope sanctions are imposed on Iran's oil export and on its petroleum import. I am fairly convinced that this will not happen in the Security Council, but the United States can do it effectively outside of the UN, and I am convinced that other major countries will join it."
Tensions with Syria recently escalated following reports that it transferred surface-to-surface Scud missiles to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
On Monday, Syrian President Bashar Assad's advisor Bouthaina Shaaban said the Israeli allegations in the matter were meant to damage Damascus' ties with the United States, which have recently been warming. In an article published in Syria's state newspaper Tishreen, Shaaban called the accusations "ridiculous".
At the start of the meeting, Netanyahu called for unity among the party's ministers and Knesset members, ahead of the Likud Central Committee conference on Thursday. "We are facing very great challenges, and I am happy to see you here together again. Facing such great challenges, we must maintain unity, so that we can focus on them."
'There is nothing wrong with our country'
Coalition Chairman Ze'ev Elkin also stressed the need for unity in the party: "We are facing great challenges and a reform by the government. We remain united in the coalition, and this room will certainly stay united."
Netanyahu briefly outlined the issues on the national agenda: "We hope we are on the verge of peace talks with the Palestinians, and we will also safeguard Israel's interests. We also want these talks. We are facing the challenge of continuing Israeli growth.
"We are facing the challenge of connecting the periphery to central Israel. During this session, we are also going to present another biennial budget, and despite the fact that all the factions said they couldn't handle it, I know, and I believe that this is what we will do, and we will have to work very hard on it."
The prime minister added, "During this summer session, we will bring the talked-about planning and construction reform. This problem is real and calls for a correction, the planning and construction protocols need to be simplified, also in order to avoid corruption.
"We must live up to these great challenges and maintain unity in order to focus on them. I believe that at this time, the right thing to do is for all of us to work together."
During the meeting, MK Tzipi Hotovely asked Netanyahu about reports of his agreement to the establishment of a Palestinian state in temporary borders. Netanyahu said there were no understandings or agreements of such a move, and said any such reports are untrue.
Hotovely also asked Netanyahu about the de-facto construction freeze in Jerusalem, amid reports of unspoken understandings for a building freeze in the city for the next few months. In response, Netanyahu said, "Construction in Jerusalem will continue, and we will continue to stand up for our vital principles. Jerusalem is a vital principle – and we will continue planning, and constructing."
Speaking at a Kadima faction meeting marking the opening of the summer session, Opposition leader Tzipi Livni said Netanyahu's government has "turned the State of Israel into a weak and isolated country; a country whose most basic interests are being questioned…The public is paying the highest price for this.
"There is nothing wrong with our country; it is the government that is terrible. I hope the tough year the citizens of Israel endured will not cause them to doubt the true Zionist vision," she said.
Attila Somfalvi contributed to this report
