Benjamin Netanyahu sent clear signals to the Obama administration, when he said that Israel will not give up the Golan Heights in any peace negotiations with what he called “their enemies�. Read more, photos and videos below.
Benjamin Netanyahu
Even before Netanyahu knows whether or not he will be Israel’s next Prime Minister, he is sending a clear warning to the Obama administration that he will not be pushed around. He will not be forced to concede land for peace to the enemies of Israel. The new administration is most definitely looking at the upcoming elections in Israel with a sense of reluctance. Benjamin Netanyahu is an extreme right winger, and he holds a slim lead over Tzipi Livni. From Bloomberg:
Just as he confounded former President Bill Clinton in the 1990s, Netanyahu probably will resist if Obama pushes too hard to extract Israeli concessions for peace in the Middle East.
Netanyahu promises to bring a harder line with Israel’s Arab neighbors, and that makes some in the Obama administration nervous. As the war between Hamas and Israel continues, and the administration has not been able to make headway into any negotiations Israel seems poised to continue their war efforts; more rockets were fired into Israel on Sunday.
Benjamin Netanyahu is not promising to end the conflict in Gaza, as a matter of fact his rhetoric sounds a bit like he is promising to wipe Hamas out of Gaza. Obama is going to have the real prospect of having to deal with an Israeli prime minister that may not be so easy to corral. From the Washington Post:
“We must smash the Hamas power in Gaza,” Likud party leader Binyamin (“Bibi”) Netanyahu said at one rally last week. “There will be no escape from toppling the Hamas regime,” he said at a security conference the next day. “I’m sorry to say we haven’t gotten the job done,” he said of Israel’s recent Gaza offensive in a radio interview. “The next government will have no choice but to finish the job and uproot . . . the Iranian terror base.”
I think Israeli’s will feel a bit more comfortable with Netanyahu in power. I’m not sure which side Obama’s going to ultimately fall in the Israeli, Palestinian conflict. A key in Obama’s peace plan for Israel and the Palestinians is the return of the Golan Heights to Syria. Netanyahu says that will never happen. One of the big sticking points for conservatives in the United States, was how Barack Obama would treat Israel. I guess we are about to find out for real.
Watch videos of Benjamin Netanyahu below.
Netanyahu on Beck Video
Netanyahu on BBC Video
February 9th, 2009 at 9:27 am
Netanyahu promised Israeli’s that he will destroy Hamas. If the people elect him, that will be why they elected him. He caved in his last stint as Israel’s leader. If Israel gives him another chance, this time he must live up to his promises.
February 9th, 2009 at 11:20 am
Obama will want him to try talking to them. Live in peace with them. They need change and hope and hope and change.
Netanyahu could take a lesson from the Community Organizer, Lawyer, Student of Islam. Looks what he has done for us in just a mere 3 weeks.
Given a chance, he could do the same for them.
February 10th, 2009 at 9:14 pm
[...] Israel elections are still too close to call, however, both Tzipi Livni and Benjamin Netanyahu (also known as Bibi) have claimed victory. The right wing of the party has won a clear victory by [...]