Diskin: I'm 'very worried' by September statehood bid

Shin Bet chief warns of declaration of Palestinian statehood in UN; Ayalon warns, Israel cannot prevent General Assembly from granting state.

By JPOST.COM STAFF, YAAKOV KATZ
Yuval Diskin 311 (photo credit: Sivan Faraj )
Yuval Diskin 311
(photo credit: Sivan Faraj )
Outgoing Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) Chief Yuval Diskin said he is "very worried by what [is expected to] take place in September," referring to a Palestinian initiative to seek statehood in the United Nations.
Speaking at Tel Aviv University on Wednesday, Diskin said, "September is always a very bad month in the Middle East. I'm not sure that things will happen on the first of October. I expect that it will set in motion processes that can also deteriorate if no developments take place."
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Speaking at the same event, Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon also addressed the Palestinian initiative to seek statehood in the United Nations in September, saying that Israel is powerless to prevent it.
"Israel will no succeed to prevent recognition of a Palestinian state in the [UN] General Assembly, driven by an automatic Arab majority," Ayalon said in a speech at Tel Aviv University.
"But such a decision will not be taken in the Security Council," he added, "where there is a majority of responsible countries."
Regarding the responsibility of other countries to the peace process, Ayalon said that the United State, Russia, the European Union and several other countries are all obligated by the Oslo Accords, which demand a diplomatic process involving dialogue.
The Shin Bet chief also addressed the recent US operation that killed Osama bin Laden. The United States has more legal leeway than Israel, enabling it to carry out operations like the one which killed bin Laden in Pakistan earlier this month, Dsikin said.
“In comparison to Israel which is under constant criticism regarding its war on terror, the US can permit itself to launch operations like these without facing a trial afterwards,” Diskin said.  “The Americans can influence international courts. Israel has more difficulty doing so.”
Last week, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s military secretary had to back out of a visit to England out of fear that he would be arrested for his involvement in Operation Cast Lead two years ago.
Diskin also said that while terrorist attacks are down in recent years, Palestinian terrorist groups are still motivated. He said that the Shin Bet foiled over 100 attacks, including suicide bombings, in recent years against Israeli targets.


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