Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that “it is only a matter of time” before the unknown assailants that committed Tuesday’s act of terror, in which Rabbi Raziel Sheva was killed in a drive-by shooting near the West Bank outpost of Havat Gilad. In an annual address last night to foreign reporters based in Israel, Netanyahu accused Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ government of supporting murderers who murdered Rabbi Sheva, a father of six children.
On President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu re-emphasized that the decision aligned a self-evident reality in which Jerusalem today functions fully as the capital of the Jewish state, and will remain so under any deal that would viably end the decades old Arab or Palestinian conflict. Netanyahu said, “Mr. Trump said something that is so self-evident, he said that the government, the seat of government of Israel is in Jerusalem. The Knesset, our parliament is in Jerusalem, the judiciary, the supreme court is in Jerusalem, you know that is not going to change, you know that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel under any deal ultimate or not, everybody understands, with a deal, without a deal, Jerusalem is Israel’s capital and therefore, it makes sense to also move the American Embassy there,” the Israeli leader told the reporters in attendance.
With regard to the funding of the United Nations’ Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, UNRWA, the Israeli leader reiterated Jerusalem’s position in which it views the organization as misleading the true reality by supporting, among others, fictitious refugees. That is why, Netanyahu suggested to implement a gradual conversion of all funds intended for UNRWA, to be diverted to other international agency that assist ‘genuine refugees’. PM Netanyahu stressed, “We already have great great grandchildren of refugees who are not refugees but they are listed on the, on the list of UNRWA so I suggest something else, I suggest a gradual conversion of all funds going to UNRWA to other agencies to deal with the question of refugees and actually have criteria. This will not, this will not have negative effects, it will have positive effects because the perpetuation of the dream of bringing the descendants of refugees back to Jaffa is what sustains this conflict. UNRWA is part of the problem not part of the solution it is time to bring another organization into being, the ones that exist, they can do the job,” the Israeli leader suggested.
UNRWA did not immediately respond to TV7’s request for comment.