PM Netanyahu's Remarks at the Start of the Weekly Cabinet Meeting

IMRA
Sunday, July 19, 2009

(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Following are excerpts from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting today (Sunday), 19.7.09:

"I read the newspaper headlines today about the construction of a
neighborhood in Jerusalem and I would like to re-emphasize that the united
Jerusalem is the capital of the Jewish people and of the State of Israel.
Our sovereignty over it is cannot be challenged; this means - inter alia -
that residents of Jerusalem may purchase apartments in all parts of the
city.

This has been the policy of all Israeli governments and I would like to say
that it is indeed being implemented because in recent years hundreds of
apartments in Jewish neighborhoods and in the western part of the city have
been purchased by - or rented to - Arab residents and we did not interfere.
This says that there is no ban on Arabs buying apartments in the western
part of the city and there is no ban on Jews buying or building apartments
in the eastern part of the city.

This is the policy of an open city, an undivided city that has no separation
according to religion or national affiliation. We cannot accept the idea
that Jews will not have the right to live and purchase in all parts of
Jerusalem.(However Maaleh Adumin, Gush Etzion, Hevron, Beitar....) I can only describe to myself what would happen if someone would propose that Jews could not live in certain neighborhoods in New York, London, Paris or Rome. There would certainly be a major international outcry. (Actually there would be very little outcry and one would not expect Obama to have an opinion on the matter. There are any number of neighborhoods where Jews may not live in France due to Islamic extremists,and any number of countries nearby that Jews may not live in at all) Accordingly, we cannot agree to such a decree in Jerusalem. This has been the policy of Israeli governments over the years and it is also the policy of our Government."

Prime Minister Netanyahu also eulogized former MK, Minister, Mossad Director
and senior IDF officer Meir Amit, and former ISA Director Avraham Ahituv,
both of whom passed away recently.
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