PM Netanyahu’s remarks at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting

We send condolences to Egypt on the vicious mass murder of civilians during prayer. Radical Islam’s terror does not distinguish between religions, people or nations. All the countries in the world should unite in order to fight it, everywhere.

(Communicated by the Prime Minister’s media advisor)

Prime Minister Netanyahu at the weekly Cabinet meeting. Archive photo: Reuters/Amir Cohen.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting today (Sunday, November 26, 2017):

„I regret Minister Yaakov Litzman’s decision to resign from the government. He is an excellent health minister and has done a great deal for the health of the citizens of Israel. The national government headed by the Likud is the best government for the State of Israel. I think all the coalition members are interested in its continuation. I don’t think- I know. The Shabbat is important to us, and so are the needs of all citizens of the Israel, including of course the need of safe and continuous transportation. I believe we will find a rational solution. We are working on it, it’s in reach. We will work together in order to continue serving the citizens of Israel.

On behalf of all citizens of Israel, we send condolences to the Egyptian government, to the Egyptian citizens, on the vicious mass murder of civilians during prayer. The radical Islam’s terror does not distinguish between religions, people or nations. I think that the obvious thing is that all the countries in the world should unite in order to fight it, everywhere, including Sinai.

In two days, on the 29th of November, we will mark the 70th anniversary to the United Nations resolution recognizing a Jewish state in the land of Israel. We are allocating today 30 million NIS for preserving and restoring the independence building in Tel Aviv, the same place where the first Prime Minister, David Ben Gurion declared the state of Israel before he was prime minister. In addition, we will establish in that place a museum for the history of the nation of Israel in the land of Israel, where the original declaration of independence will be displayed to public.

This is part of our heritage plan which we are investing in a great deal of resources, money, thought and attention because ultimately our future is linked to our past, and many nations are wiped, many cultures disappear of the face of the earth because in the global tsunami identities disappear of the face of the earth. That is why it is important to us to connect the nation of Israel and the next generations to our ancient heritage and to our new heritage. The effort of the heritage sites is one of the main axes of this effort.

I’ve been asked recently, during a Kol Israel broadcast in leading to 29th of November, what do you see in the coming 100 years, what are the needs”, I remember more or less the idea of the question, and I said that the first need for the next 100 years is to remember the 4,000 previous ones. That is the first thing that will ensure the future of the jewfish nation in the land of Israel and the State of Israel.

Now allow me to address an additional thing. Last week I saw a tweet on Twitter by Haaretz publi sher Amos Schocken. He referred to the government’s policy of removing illegal infiltrators out of the State of Israel and the headline Amos Schocken chose to give that tweet was „murderers in suits”. That is how he called the Israeli Prime Minister, me, and a few other ministers sitting around this table.

I am trying to know what would have been his response if a statement of this sort was made about a public figure of another wing? You can imagine on you own. In this case, there was no response. There were no demands for investigations, no demands for condemnations, no public figures were addressed, no articles, no special broadcasts, nothing. The same is true of horrendous things like portraying MK’s as monkeys- no response!

So to all our preachers, the celebration of our hypocrisy and double standards simply cries out to heaven. I am saying to all those who preach us- do not lecture us.”