Palestinians decry Netanyahu-Gantz gov't, warn annexation ends peace deal

Some Palestinian officials and factions called on the Palestinian leadership to immediately halt all forms of cooperation with Israel.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a Security Council meeting at the United Nations in New York, U.S., February 11, 2020. (photo credit: REUTERS/SHANNON STAPLETON)
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a Security Council meeting at the United Nations in New York, U.S., February 11, 2020.
(photo credit: REUTERS/SHANNON STAPLETON)
Palestinians from across the political spectrum have reacted to the agreement between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White Chairman Benny Gantz to form a unity government by warning that the extension of Israeli sovereignty to any part of the West Bank would signal the end of the two-state solution.
Some Palestinian officials and factions called on the Palestinian leadership to immediately halt all forms of cooperation with Israel, including security coordination between the Palestinian security forces and the IDF.
PA Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said that the “formation of an Israeli annexation government means ending the two-state solution and the dismantling of the rights of the people of Palestine as established under international law and resolutions.”
On Monday, PA President Mahmoud Abbas warned the Israeli government and the US administration against proceeding with plans to extend Israeli sovereignty to parts of the West Bank.
Addressing the weekly meeting of the PA cabinet via videoconference, Abbas said that the Palestinians’ preoccupation with the coronavirus pandemic does not mean that they have forgotten about “annexation” or US President Donald Trump’s plan for Mideast peace, which is known as the Deal of the Century.
The Trump plan proposes for Israel to extend Israeli sovereignty to parts of the West Bank, while entertaining the idea for Israel to swap out populated Israeli territory in the Triangle Area to a future Palestinian state.
PLO Secretary-General Saeb Erekat said in response to the Netanyahu-Gantz deal that the new Israeli government “has two options; to either open the doors for a meaningful peace process or to further jeopardize any hope for peace.”
Erekat warned that a government coalition “based on a commitment to annex more occupied Palestinian territory is a threat to a rules-based world order and to peace, security and stability in the Middle East.”
According to Erekat, “annexation means the end of any possibility for a negotiated solution. It is an international responsibility to hold the new Israeli government accountable and to demand full implementation of its obligations under international law and signed agreements.”
Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the PLO Executive Committee, commented on the deal by stating that the Israeli political establishment “has united on the agenda of permanent colonization and annexation.”
It is now very clear, Ashrawi argued, “that Israeli political parties are unequivocally committed to the entrenchment and permanence of the conflict as well as the perpetual oppression of the Palestinian people with the full support and backing of the Trump administration, which is clearly intent on implementing its dangerous and objectionable plan.”
The unity deal “reveals the true colors of Israeli political parties and proves beyond doubt the death of the so-called left in Israel,” Ashrawi said.
She also denounced Gantz’s Blue and White party, saying it “had a chance to forge a new path forward for Israel and the region that departs from morally, politically, and financially corrupt leadership towards a coalition that was more responsible and inclusive. They opted to bolster the status quo of illegality, corruption, and colonization.”
Ashrawi vowed that the Palestinians “will confront this lawless and dangerous agenda resolutely and with unwavering determination” and called on the international community to “challenge this brazen Israeli political agenda without hesitation or delay.”
Another senior PLO official, Tayseer Khaled, warned of the repercussions of the Netanyahu-Gantz deal and pointed out that it came while the world is preoccupied with the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. He also called on the Palestinian leadership to respond to the formation of the new government by implementing previous decisions by a number of Palestinian bodies to revoke all signed agreements with Israel.
The PLO’s Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) warned that the Netanyahu-Gantz deal “would lead to more aggression on the Palestinians and consolidate Israeli measures on our land.”
Jamil Muzher, a senior PFLP official, urged the PA to end all forms of contact with Israel, including security coordination between the Palestinian security forces and the IDF in the West Bank.
“There is no difference between the platforms and ideologies of Gantz and Netanyahu, which are based on annexation, Judaization, settlement and killings,” Muzher said. He called on the PA and Hamas to end their differences and work together in light of the new political developments in Israel.
The Palestinian Democratic Union (FIDA), a small political party belonging to the PLO, said that the new government in Israel “would be one of most dangerous governments.” The party claimed that the Netanyahu-Gantz government would “wage war on the Palestinians and eliminate their national project.” It further called on Egypt and Jordan to suspend their relations with Israel and on the PA to halt security coordination with the IDF.
Hamas, for its part, said that the Netanyahu-Gantz agreement “confirms the failure of the so-called peace process.”
Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum said that the deal “affirms our conviction that the Israeli entity is an enemy of the Palestinian people and the biggest threat to the region.”
Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) official Yousef al-Hasaineh said that the Netanyahu-Gantz deal “constitutes an advanced step on the way to implementing the Deal of the Century, which targets the Palestinian issue.”
The new Israeli government, the PIJ official said, “reflects the extent of right-wing and extremism in the Israeli entity and constitutes a new blow to all those who bet on the possibility of resuming the settlement process.”