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Former PM Olmert: Netanyahu is isolating Israel from the rest of the world
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Saturday lambasted current premier Benjamin Netanyahu over his decision to expand construction in the settlements of the West Bank and East Jerusalem in response to the United Nations decision to approve upgrading the status of the Palestinian Authority.
“I fear this issue has caused much discomfort in states across the world,” Olmert told Channel Two’s Meet the Press in an interview Saturday evening. “[Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu is isolating the State of Israel from entire world in an unprecedented way, and we are going to pay a difficult price for this in every aspect of our lives.”
“I think the State of Israel acted inappropriately, which was a kind of slap in the face of the president of the United States,” Olmert told interviewer Dana Weiss, of Channel Two. “I was the one who included E-1 in the territory of Israel in my peace plan. The argument isn’t whether or not E-1 should be a part of the territory of Israel. Three days after the U.S. president proved that he was willing to use his influence for the good of the State of Israel and was left alone with another eight countries alongside Micronesia and the Marshall Islands, with all the European nations abstaining, and then the next day they announce the construction of housing units that for 15 years have been ready to go up but were not built because it was decided that the time wasn’t opportune. This is a decision that isolates the State of Israel from the entire world.”
Olmert also commented on speculation of his return to Israeli politics. “Immediately after the sentencing in my trial, I announced that I would not return to politics,” Olmert insisted.
He said the pressure to return to politics began after his recent acquittal from the Talansky and Rishon Tours cases. “After my acquittal, systematic pressure of the likes I cannot remember began. A ceaseless stream of from all circles and all across Israel and the four corners of the world called out: ‘Run Olmert, run.’ I looked at the political playing field, at the behavior, especially in the block that is closer to my opinions, and reached the conclusion that I don’t want to be in that place in that block at this time.”
More: http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/for…m-1.483480
2012-12-08 15:43:04
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