Foreign minister tells faction meeting Israel's goal should be "to take down Hamas," says "they must be taken down as soon as possible."
By LAHAV HARKOV, JPOST.COM STAFFForeign Minsiter Avigdor Lieberman 311 (R)(photo credit: REUTERS/Uriel Sinai)Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said that Israel will not make any additional compromises or concessions to the Palestinians in peace talks, speaking at an Israel Beiteinu faction meeting on Monday.The Palestinian leadership "spoke with former prime ministers Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert without demanding a settlement freeze," he said, asserting that the PA leadership should do the same with the current government.RELATED:IDF prepares for Gaza escalation as ceasefire attempted Lieberman on rocket fire: We don't want escalation Lieberman said that the current government took a number of clear steps in the two and a half years it has been in power, and mentioned that Israel Beiteinu accepted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's Bar Ilan speech and that the government had agreed to the Quartet's stance.
Unlike the Palestinians, who he slammed for rejecting a recent set of Quartet parameters for restarting peace talks, Israel reacted immediately to the proposal and said it was ready for direct negotiations.Addressing the rocket fire from Gaza in recent days that killed one Israeli, the foreign minister said that איק only solution was to end Hamas's rule over the Strip."The goal of the State of Israel should be to take down the Hamas regime in Gaza," he said. "They must be taken down and as soon as possible."Referring to many near misses where rockets caused no injuries, Lieberman said, "We have had a lot of miracles but God helps those who help themselves."Israel, he added, "cannot continue to live under fire."
