Smotrich responds to British Foreign Secretary's condemnation of E1 construction: "We will not accept your dictates"
After the new British Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband, expressed firm opposition to the plan for building housing units in the area between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim, the chairman of the Religious Zionism party went on the offensive. "The British Mandate in Eretz Yisrael has ended," Smotrich declared, while also challenging Gadi Eisenkot.
Finance Minister and chairman of the Religious Zionism party Bezalel Smotrich responded on Thursday to the sharp condemnation issued by British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband following the Ministry of Construction's tender for 1,234 housing units in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim.
"The British Mandate in Eretz Yisrael has ended; we will not accept dictates from foreign countries," Minister Smotrich stated during a ceremony marking the re-establishment of the Kadim settlement in the northern West Bank, which was evacuated 21 years ago during the disengagement.
"I heard the condemnation from the British Foreign Secretary regarding my decision to eliminate the idea of a Palestinian state and to connect Jerusalem, our eternal capital, with Ma'ale Adumim in the E1 area—something my predecessors did not dare to do," Smotrich said. "I refuse to be impressed or intimidated by threats of sanctions. We do not accept dictates from foreign countries. We do what is good and right for the State of Israel."
Smotrich called on the chairman of the Yahad party, Gadi Eisenkot, to clarify his position on the establishment of a Palestinian state: "You aspire to be Prime Minister of Israel; are you prepared to fully condemn the blatant and insolent interference of foreign governments? Are you prepared to commit that you will not stop the construction plans in E1? Are you prepared to commit that the settlements and farms we are establishing in Judea and Samaria will remain standing even under your government?"
Earlier, British Foreign Secretary Miliband stated: "This is unacceptable, destructive, and endangers the two-state solution." He summoned the charge d'affaires of the Israeli embassy in Britain, Christian Cantor, for a reprimand. According to Miliband, the E1 project is politically sensitive and "will strike at the heart of Palestine," endangering the separation of the West Bank from East Jerusalem.
"Britain has been clear in its opposition to the project and its support for the two-state solution as the only way to ensure long-term security and peace," the British minister added. "All settlements undermine this possibility and constitute a blatant violation of international law." He noted that he had made it clear to Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar that the government must "stop the E1 plans immediately, withdraw the tender, and stop all settlement expansion."
"Britain will not stand by and accept the destruction of the two-state solution," Miliband continued. "In the coming weeks, we will present a comprehensive set of measures to respond to the Israeli government's policy, protect the existence of a Palestinian state, target sanctions against those participating in illegal settlement expansion, and support a just and lasting peace."
The new tender, with a submission deadline of October 19, has caused a stir in Europe. A European diplomat remarked that "Israel explicitly promised its friends on the continent that there would be no progress in construction in E1. This is a crossing of a red line." According to the diplomat, Europe is currently discussing whether to respond with measures against Israel before the upcoming elections, with Smotrich being viewed as the primary driver of the move.
