By Jerusalem Newswire Editorial Staff
Feb 21, 2005
A chief “Palestinian” demand for peace is control over eastern Jerusalem, and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has proven he is capable of caving in to that demand, Likud “rebel” leader Uzi Landau said Sunday.
Fearing Sharon’s “disengagement” plan will lead Israel down a slippery slope of surrender, Landau said those loyal to the Land of Israel would fight a fierce battle to save Jewish Gaza and the settlements of northern Samaria.
Landau also warned that Sharon and his government appear to be preparing public opinion for violence against any Jews who refuse to abandon their biblical and historical right to settle the land.
Those lawmakers opposed to the transfer of Jewish settlers say Sharon’s plan, despite having passed into law last week, can still be defeated by toppling the government over the 2005 national budget.
Sharon will divide Jerusalem
During the 1996 national elections, the right-wing supporters of prime ministerial candidate Binyamin Netanyahu regularly employed the slogan “Peres will divide Jerusalem” in order to discredit Labor Party chief Shimon Peres.
That slogan is now being used again Sharon by members of his own Likud Party.
From Yasser Arafat to Mahmoud Abbas, the “Palestinians” have consistently demanded control over the eastern half of Jerusalem as a prerequisite for peace.
A spokesman for Abbas confirmed Sunday this demand remains in place.
And Sharon’s willingness to abandon his own convictions and surrender Gaza and northern Samaria proves he has the capacity to one day give in on Jerusalem and divide the city, Landau told a gathering of Likud activists Sunday.
When Sharon is finished, all that will “remain for actual negotiations will be Jerusalem; in the end [Jerusalem] will be at the heart of peace negotiations, and in the end Sharon will divide Jerusalem,” Landau said.
On Monday Sharon fired back, saying Jerusalem would forever remain the undivided capital of Israel.
Prior to his 2003 election victory, however, Sharon also vowed Jewish Gaza would never be uprooted.
Battle to the finish
Landau said it was crucial for those loyal to the Land of Israel to fight now to save not only Gaza and northern Samaria but all lands that may soon fall victim to international pressure and leftist policies bent on retreat.
“If the first part of this withdrawal is implemented, withdrawing from Judea and Samaria will be easier because the government will know there is no serious opposition,” the veteran politician explained.
As such, “this must be a fierce battle, but avoid escalation to civil war.”
Will Sharon use violence?
But while retreat’s chief opponents are committed to avoiding violence, the same may not be true of Sharon, Landau noted.
“In the Prime Minister’s Office they are now talking the same talk as that heard prior to the attack on the Altalena,” Landau said.
In 1948, the newly established government of David Ben Gurion ordered the nascent IDF to open fire on a Jewish ship importing arms for Menachem Begin’s Irgun militia.
Sixteen Irgun members were killed by their fellow Jews.
And now leftists in Sharon’s government are “saying that in life of the nation there needs to be more than one Altalena,” Landau stated incredulously. “Jews killed Jews there in cold blood!”
Government’s Achilles’ heel
It may not come to a physical showdown though, if Landau and his colleagues are successful in their primary course of action.
On Monday, Landau announced on Israel Radio that at least 13 Likud MKs would vote against the 2005 national budget, greatly increasing the odds it will not gain Knesset approval.
Other large Knesset faction such as Shas and Shinui have also said they would oppose the budget.
If Sharon’s government fails to pass its 2005 budget by March 31, the law stipulates that new elections must be held 90 days later.