Netanyahu: There is no substitute for our security control over West Bank

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday: “There is no substitute in any future scenario for our security control over the territory,” in reference to the entire occupied West Bank.

Netanyahu said, “Israel cannot count on the Palestinian Authority to stop terror attacks,” adding, “Of course, we would be happy if the Palestinian Authority did its part, but we see that it is not. In most cases, it does not confront those who need to be confronted.”

A statement released after he toured the Central Command of the occupation army said: “They underscored the main challenges facing the Command in general and the unit in particular, and the constantly changing conditions Central Command is called upon to deal with in facing these challenges.”

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“This is not my first visit here to the unit.” Netanyahu said. “From visit to visit, I see the advancement, the resourcefulness and the creativity, and I see the results. One cannot argue with results.”

“We are in a confrontation in a region in which there is a continual struggle between those who want to move forward with us and radical Islamist forces that want to take us back to medieval times. It is a major struggle.”

“Externally, it is – of course – run by Iran, which is our greatest enemy, and we are confronting it. Locally, there are forces that also want to strangle us in various places. Relatively, we are succeeding at the moment, in holding them and in deterring them, whether in Gaza or in Lebanon,” he added.