The discord in the government grew Monday as coalition partners spoke about the contact of some parties with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and other Ramallah officials.
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"Abbas is using every opportunity to incite against the government," Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman said during a Yisrael Beytenu faction meeting.
"I urge everyone in the government to boycott him. He's not a partner for anything – he's a terrorist involved in diplomatic terrorism, which is sometimes more dangerous," he charged.
Over at the Meretz faction meeting, however, leader Nitzan Horowitz stressed that "Israel has an extensive relationship with the Palestinian Authority. They are our partners. Anyone who tries to portray them as enemies is just ignoring reality. We want to upgrade it [ties] and embark on a diplomatic negotiation."
Horowitz also slammed Itamar Ben-Gvir, leader of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, for "trying to agitate the situation on the ground during a very sensitive security period."
Countering him "is why this government is important," he said.
During Yesh Atid's faction meeting, party head and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid remarked, "I'm not saying that the government doesn't have problems but it is working – it's working well. At some point, everyone will understand that the opposition is spreading lies and trying to drive this country into chaos."
Opposition Leader Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, slammed the government for collaborating with Ra'am, the Islamist coalition partner.
"Bennett continues with the state's liquidation. There is no limit to what he is willing to do to stay in office. Last night, Ra'am announced that the government has completely capitulated on the issue of illegal construction. Ra'am also demanded NIS 50 billion – and got it."
He further slammed the government for planning to revise the Nation-State Law, passed during his term in office, calling it "a national, moral capitulation to those who negate Israel's existence as the nation-state of the Jewish people.
"If you repeal the Nation-State Law you are actually repealing the Law of Return, and that will lead to Israel being flooded by millions of Muslim immigrants who will abolish the Jewish majority in the country. That is the real intention here," Netanyahu claimed.
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