Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says religious Zionist sector cannot be blamed for the actions of a radical fringe, warns against juxtaposing Palestinian and Jewish terrorists • “We condemn terrorism, while the Palestinians praise it,” he says.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented Sunday on the state’s efforts to eradicate Jewish terrorism, saying the religious Zionist sector cannot be faulted for the crimes of the radical fringe, whose actions he denounced.
Speaking ahead of Sunday’s cabinet meeting, Netanyahu commented on a video aired by Channel 10 News last week, which depicted revelers at the wedding of two far-right activists dancing while waving weapons and stabbing a photo of Ali Dawabsha, an 18-month-old Palestinian baby who was killed, alongside his parents, in a terrorist arson attack on their home in the Palestinian village of Duma, near Nablus.
The attack and the “celebration” shown in the video, dubbed the “wedding of hate,” are the “work of a radical fringe group that does not represent religious Zionism,” Netanyahu said.
He strongly denounced both the attack and the video, adding there was no room for comparison between Jewish and Arab terrorism.
“Arab terrorism strikes us relentlessly and we fight it constantly and with no limitations. It is much larger in scope, and there is no room for comparison [to Jewish terrorism]. In Israel, the government, all leaders and bodies denounce Jewish terrorism. We condemn it, while they [the Palestinians] praise it. The Palestinian Authority names town squares and streets after [terrorists] and pays them salaries. There is a huge difference between the healthy approach practiced by Israeli society and Israeli democracy, which negates terrorism, condemns it and tries to eradicate it, and the Palestinians, who unfortunately incite and encourage terrorism,” the prime minister said.
Netanyahu also criticized statements voiced over the past few days against the religious Zionist community, for failing to curb its volatile youth; criticism which has become harsher since the release of the “wedding of hate” video.
“It’s very important to underscore that these extremists, this radical fringe group, do not represent religious Zionism. Trying to link the two together wrongs religious Zionism, a great sector that’s loyal to Israel, and contributes to this country, to the IDF.”
Netanyahu also spoke in defense of the Shin Bet security agency, which has been the center of torture allegations by Jewish extremists.
“All branches of the Shin Bet are doing incredibly important work. They follow the law and they operate under legal supervision. They follow the government’s counterterrorism policy, which says we fight terrorism indiscriminately. We will not tolerate murder or terrorism, regardless of its origin,” Netanyahu said.
By Israel Hayom Staff
