By GIL HOFFMANUpdated: FEBRUARY 16, 2017 01:21Netanyahu and Trump meet for first time in Washington at joint White House press conference on Feb. 15, 2017 (credit: REUTERS)
The Israeli Right declared victory Wednesday night after US President Donald Trump declined to commit to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Politicians on the Right ignored Trump’s call to limit settlement construction and instead focused on what they saw as most positive.“This is the end of an era,” said Bayit Yehudi chairman Naftali Bennett. “The Palestinian flag has come down and has been replaced by the Israeli flag. The prime minister displayed leadership and daring and strengthened Israel’s security.”Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev (Likud) compared US-Israel relations to construction in Judea and Samaria, saying that the era of freezes had ended for both.Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan praised Trump for realizing that there must be another solution to end the conflict and that now is the time to put pressure on the Palestinians, the side that refuses to end the conflict.Politicians on the Left saw the situation similarly, but lamented, rather than praised, the statements by the US president.Opposition leader Isaac Herzog (Zionist Union) said: “it was sad and embarrassing to see Netanyahu avoid the concept of separating from the Palestinians via the two-state solution. He said all Israelis should fear the one-state solution because it would not be a Jewish state.”Zionist Union MK Erel Margalit said, “The extreme Right won tonight, and the State of Israel lost... Netanyahu is leading us to a binational state and fleeing the two-state solution which is in Israel’s interest. We are witnessing Netanyahu fleeing from his investigations, and we will all pay the price.”Meretz chairwoman Zehava Gal-On said, “No matter what Trump says or does not say, the only solution remains ending the occupation, to keep Israel Jewish and democratic.”She warned that any other solution would “guarantee that we will become an apartheid state.”
Meretz MK Michal Rozin said that “contrary to the hopes of the Right, Trump did not call for the construction of the Jewish Temple or for Israel to annex Abbas’s headquarters, but did say that Israel had to stop building in the settlements.”Zionist Union MK Stav Shaffir advised the Right to “restrain their cries of joy.” She said, “Underneath the flattery of Netanyahu, there is no plan for maintaining security.”Joint List MK Ahmad Tibi said, “If Netanyahu and Trump decide they want a one-state solution, there will have to be equality and a right to vote for all.”