Lapid Says Budget Will Pass; Criticizes Bennett Over New Homes in Yehudah and Shomron

YERUSHALAYIM
Head of the Yesh Atid party Yair Lapid speaks during a faction meeting at the Knesset, Monday. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Speaking at a Yesh Atid party meeting on Monday, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid assured his fellow party members that the state budget, which must be passed within the next few weeks, will pass.

Lapid said at the opening of the faction meeting that the current coalition is successfully dealing with issues that have been “neglected for 10 years,” but indirectly criticized Prime Minister Naftali Bennett over Sunday’s decision to build 1,300 new homes in Yehudah and Shomron.

“Next time, I will be in the room during decisions on such matters,” Lapid said, after left-wing coalition parties complained about being blindsided by the decision.

Lapid noted: “I want to clear all the background noise and focus on what’s important: The budget will pass. The coalition is working. A big part of the difficulty is because we are insisting on dealing with things that weren’t dealt with for 10 years.

“Look at what happened yesterday in the government and the Knesset. We are dealing with [crime in] the Arab community, the climate crisis, Holocaust survivors, youth groups, […] people with disabilities, things that were neglected for years.

“When you take care of things, there will be disagreements and conflicting interests. Action has a cost, but we are willing to pay it,” he said.

According to Lapid, “This is not a government that is 10% right-wing or 10% left-wing. It’s a government that is 100% for the benefit of Israeli citizens, a patriotic government, and true patriots don’t run away from problems – they deal with them.

“In the next four years, we are going to argue and take action. We’re going to pass budgets, reduce the price of food, continue to take a world lead in the battle against coronavirus – and we’ll also argue, about the settlements, about the Palestinians, and about security and the economy.

“Making changes is always a complicated process and there will always be those who try to stop us and turn the clock back. But we are not turning back. The State of Israel is advancing to a better place.”

During the course of his speech, Lapid referred to Sunday’s memorial service marking 31 years since the assassination of Rabbi Meir Kahana, calling all those who participated the “ideological descendants of Yigal Amir,” who was convicted of murdering Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin.

“Itamar Ben-Gvir isn’t a Religious-Zionist – he’s an extremist,” Lapid said.

MK Itamar Ben-Gvir responded to Lapid’s comments, saying, “I am an extremist in my love of Israel, in my love of IDF soldiers and in the love of the State. Yair Lapid should be ashamed of his words, but I am not surprised to hear them from someone who embraces the Muslim Brotherhood.

“I am proud to attend the memorial service for a Jew who gave his life for the State. Lapid goes to the memorial of [late MK Saeed] Alkharumi and I go to that of Rabbi Kahana, who was murdered. Those who pity the cruel, despise the lovers of Israel,” said Ben-Gvir.

 

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