Netanyahu: Israel Will Not Be ‘Binational State’

He questioned how Israel could possibly maintain its character as a Jewish Democratic state if this were to happen.

Israel’s prime minister insists his country is not heading toward becoming a binational state, rejecting a warning to that effect by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

The last round of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, mediated by Kerry, ended in April 2014 without results.

As part of ongoing efforts to clamp down on what Jerusalem says is ongoing Palestinian incitement against Israel, printed materials and office equipment found at the headquarters were confiscated by IDF and the Civil Administration of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Unit.

In the event the Palestinian Authority (PA) breaks down, Israel’s army “could be forced to deploy tens of thousands of soldiers to the West Bank indefinitely to fill the void”, Kerry said.

Sunday’s attack was the latest in more than two months of “lone wolf” assaults by Palestinians challenging Israel’s control over the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem.

Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom told lawmakers on Friday that Israeli soldiers use excessive force during clashes with Palestinians, citing the higher number of Palestinian casualties compared to those of Israel.

He added that the level of distrust between the two sides “has never been more profound”, calling for an end to the violence before it worsens yet again.

“If there is a risk that the PA [Palestinian Authority] could collapse – and it is in Israel’s interest for it to in fact survive, as the prime minister suggested – should more therefore not be done to help sustain it?” said Kerry, speaking at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC on Saturday.

“If you are not sitting down, if all you are doing is hurling invective at each other on a daily basis, there is no prayer of beginning that kind of conversation”, he said.

“The Israeli and Palestinian people deserve better, but the current path is not leading to a more peaceful future”, Kerry said. He admitted to being frustrated by this and made clear in his speech to the Saban Forum that the USA remains committed to the two-state solution.

“It is important that that not become a slogan, not become a throw-away phrase, that it becomes a policy, which is what it is meant to be”, he said.