Bennett Calls on Trump: Let Israel Know Details of the Deal

Education Minister Naftali Bennett on Wednesday called on President Donald Trump to reveal the details of his pending “Deal of the Century” peace plan between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, saying, “Let my people know.”

Addressing at the Muni-Expo 2019, a conference on local government, Bennett said that “Israel has no greater friend than the United States of America. It is a friendship based on trust and shared values. And there is no doubt that you, President Trump, are a true friend to Israel.”

However, “friends do not keep secrets one from another. ‏We all know that the Deal of the Century will be launched right after the Israeli elections. But we, the Israelis, are in the dark about the plan itself,” Bennett complained.

He further noted that “it seems that everybody is in the loop, planning this Palestinian state right over our heads. The Americans. The Saudi prince. The Palestinians. The Jordanian king. Even Erdogan of Turkey, a blatant anti-Semite – even he’s in the loop – everybody’s in the picture. Everybody but us, the people of Israel.”

Trump is expected to publish his peace plan in the coming months, possibly immediately after the Israeli elections in April. Various reports say that the deal could entail significant concessions on Israel’s part.

Relating to the upcoming Israeli elections, Bennett said that “the Israeli public is facing a crucial election, a referendum on the creation of a Palestinian terror state, which will threaten Israel’s very existence. This isn’t a theory, this is about the lives of our children.”

Despite the significance of the vote, Israel does not know what it is voting for, Bennett protested.

“But what is the Deal of the Century? Why is it being hidden from us? It’s as if surgeons are planning to take out a part of our body, but won’t tell us anything about it. Don’t we, the Israelis, deserve to know what is in store for us before we go to the ballots? Can’t we know what we’re voting about?” he demanded.

“While we deeply respect the American president, and while nobody doubts his good intentions, it is us, the Israelis who will pay the ultimate price,” and therefore he called on Trump: “Let my people know! Put the Palestinian plan on the table, now, before we make our choices.”

“President Trump, let my people know what is the Palestinian plan. Let my people know what is in store for the people of Israel and the Land of Israel. Let my people know what will happen to Jerusalem. It’s our lives, it’s our land, it’s our future, and it’s our right to decide our fate,” he concluded, saying that no one could sever the 4,000-year-old bond the Jews have with Israel.

Bennett has repeatedly voiced opposition to any diplomatic solution which entails the establishment of a fully independent Palestinian state, explaining that it would threaten Israel’s very existence.