Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday hinted at the possibly of applying sovereignty to the West Bank settlements during a visit he made to the Beit El settlement hours after the body of terror victim Dvir Sorek, 19, was found with stab wounds in the Gush Etzion region of Judea and Samaria.
"We promised to build hundreds of housing units - today we are doing it, both because we promised and because our mission is to establish the nation of Israel in our country, to secure our sovereignty over our historic homeland," Netanyahu said.He spoke as he participated in a corner laying ceremony for a new neighborhood with 650 housing units.
"We know that the Land of Israel is bought in agony," the PM continued. "Today another one of our sons fell. He was from a family that has already made a heavy sacrifice for the Land of Israel. These vicious terrorists, they come to uproot - we come to plant. They come to destroy - we come to build. Our hands will reach out and we will deepen our roots in our homeland, in all parts of it."
Netanyahu vowed to capture the terrorists who stabbed Sorek to death. His body was found early Thursday morning in an area between the Efrat and Migdal Oz settlements. “This morning we were informed about a harsh stabbing attack," Netanyahu said in an earlier speech. "The security forces are currently in pursuit to apprehend the abhorrent terrorist and bring him to justice."On behalf of myself and the government, I send condolences to the family."Other politicians also reacted to news of the murder.President Reuven Rivlin expressed his support of the security forces “who are now chasing the murderers” and vowed “we will not rest until we catch them.”
Rivlin said that “faced with terrible terror we will act with a harsh, uncompromising hand for the well being of our citizens wherever they may be.”
Tkuma leader Betzalel Smotrich responded to the event on social media calling it “a hard morning” and expressed his support of the security forces currently in pursuit of the “heinous terrorists.” Slamming the Palestinian Authority, which he called first among those who support, speak out in favor of, and send terrorists, he called to restore Israeli deterrence and “extract a heavy price.”
Head of Yisrael Beiteinu Avigdor Liberman tied the event to what he called “surrendering to Gaza terror.”
“The security services are aware of dozens of plans to carry out attacks against Jews,” he said, “when we use the term ‘understandings’ we are using newspeak for what is in fact surrendering to terror.”
He expressed his confidence the IDF will find the people behind the attack and “will bring them to account.”
Education Minister Rafi Peretz said that “the heart aches over a youth picked in the beginning of his life” and called for “a clear message, the spilling of Jewish blood will not be forgiven.”