Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned Monday a presidential statement by the United Nations Security Council criticizing Israel's settlement activity and rapped the United States for joining it.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
The Security Council "has issued a one-sided statement which denies the rights of Jews to live in our historic homeland, fails to mention the Palestinian terror attacks in Jerusalem in which 10 Israeli civilians were murdered, ignores the Palestinian Authority's grotesque pay-for-slay policy – which subsidizes the murder of Jews – and belittles the evil of antisemitism, which has resulted in the slaughter of millions," a statement by the Prime Minister's Office said. "The statement should never have been made and the United States should never have joined it."
The presidential statement came in response to Israel's announcement on Feb. 12 to build more homes in Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria and legalize nine settlement outposts following a ramming attack in northern Jerusalem, in which 3 Israelis, including 2 children, were killed.
The Security Council said it was "deeply concerned" and "dismayed" at the announcement that "impeded peace."
"The Security Council reiterates that continuing Israeli settlement activities are dangerously imperiling the viability of the two-state solution," it said in a statement supported by all 15 members but which does not have the binding force of a resolution considered last week.
That earlier draft resolution – proposed by the United Arab Emirates – called on Israel to "immediately and completely cease" settlement activities. The draft, condemning "all attempts at annexation, including decisions and measures by Israel regarding settlements, including settlement outposts," was dropped – reportedly after the US brokered a deal to prevent it from coming to vote – and would be replaced by the new statement issued by the president of the Council.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan too blasted the presidential statement, saying the Security Council's priorities were backward.
The Palestinians' most important international commitment was their obligation to combat terror, Erdan said, "yet, today the Palestinian Authority not only refuses to take real action to prevent terrorism, it actively, for many years now, stokes the flames of violence," he told the Security Council.
"By glorifying terrorists and paying them money, the PA is breeding a culture of hatred and evil, which makes reconciliation impossible," he said, stressing that evidence was irrefutable that "the Palestinian culture of hate and terror is real. How can this council justify ignoring it and never addressing it?"
JNS.org and i24NEWS contributed to this report.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
