Kerry’s ‘one state’ comments cause consternation in Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s statement over the weekend warning Israel it may become a “binational” state if it fails to reach an agreement with the Palestinian Authority.

“The one-state solution is no solution at all for a secure, Jewish, democratic Israel living in peace”.

He called on Mr Netanyahu to stick to his commitment to a two-state solution – which, in fact, he disavowed during Israel’s general election – and to engage in dialogue with the Palestinians.

Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely said in a radio interview that she and Netanyahu, who also functions as foreign minister, would convene a meeting on Sunday to decide on what she anticipated would be a “sharp response” to Wallstrom’s comments.

U.S. secretary of state John Kerry on Saturday said there were questions about how long the Palestinian Authority could survive and warned of the impact it would have on Israel.

If it were to happen, Kerry said, Israel would be forced to assume all governance in the occupied West Bank.

In the latest violence in Jerusalem, on Sunday, a Palestinian rammed his auto into a passer-by in a Jewish neighbourhood, slightly injuring him, and then got out of the vehicle and stabbed another man, who suffered superficial wounds.

Israeli military forces have shot and killed another Palestinian in al-Quds (Jerusalem) as tensions between Israeli troops and Palestinian protesters in the occupied territories show no sign of abatement.

Israel says demolitions act as a deterrent to potential attackers, while rights groups and Palestinians say it amounts to collective punishment, forcing family members to suffer for acts committed by someone else.

However, she added that Israel’s response must not be that of “extrajudicial executions” on the scene of the attack, or a “disproportionate response” that makes “the number of dead on the other side greater than the original death toll by several factors”.

Israel says the current spate of violence is due to incitement by Palestinian leaders over the Jerusalem holy site as well as videos encouraging violence spread on social media.

Last month Wallstrom asserted that one of the causes of the Paris terror attack was the frustration of young Palestinians and the lack of a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian situation. But over two decades of failed peace talks have convinced many a deal is not possible. The situation may become irreversible, with the Palestinians abandoning efforts to set up their own state and instead demanding annexation and voting rights as citizens of a single “binational” state. The more common argument is rooted in security. But the Islamic militants of Hamas seized control of Gaza, periodically firing rockets at Israel and leading the sides to three mini-wars to date.

Netanyahu denied that Israel was headed toward incorporating the West Bank Palestinian population.