Eitam: Government Is Waking Up

Israel National News ^ | 19:03 Sep 10, '03 / 13 Elul 5763

[yonif]

Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane asked Housing Minister Effie Eitam of the National Religious Party, "I admit, I have no real question; is there anything left to say that we haven't yet said, anything left to think that we haven't yet thought?" Eitam responded,

"Perhaps what there is left to say is that the government seems to finally be open to the realization that we are facing a monster of a terrorist infrastructure that is totally dedicated to destroying our country... It is precisely for times like these that we have a state, and an army, and a national leadership, and I demand that in our coming Cabinet meeting we discuss not a reaction, but a total change in our approach. We must first of all expel - or kill, or put on trial - the entire leadership of the terrorists. This includes Yassin, Arafat, and the rest. I think that even some ministers who until now have seen the PA as a potential partner, now realize that there is no difference between Arafat and the rest. Defense Minister Mofaz just a few weeks ago presented a plan to turn over control of some cities to the PA - but all this has now changed, I feel that there has now been an awakening. Even Shinui Party ministers such as Avraham Poraz realize that we have no diplomatic partner on the other side...

"What we must do is not only to return to and control all the cities that we gave to the PA in the past, but even more: in the coming very many years in the future, there can be no substitute for the IDF in terms of security in Yesha. The only thing that we can negotiate with the Palestinians at present - and even this is contingent upon the destruction of the terrorist infrastructures - is just a gradual improvement in the municipal and administrative conditions. All talk of a [PLO] state or security organs run by them is no longer at all relevant."