Dr. Chaggai Ben-Artzi, Mrs. Sara Netanyahu’s brother, has openly criticized his brother-in-law’s policies over recent years. This time, Dr. Ben-Artzi calls for annexing Yehuda and Shomron, calling on voters to abandon the Likud party if this step is not implemented. Ben-Artzi calls on Likud voters to shift to the Bayit Leumi party in the next elections if Likud continues on its present track.

Ben-Artzi calls for declaring all areas with a ‘C’ categorization to be annexed into the State of Israel. In addition, he is calling on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to officially announce he is abandoning the so-called ‘two-state solution’, which calls for the establishment of the State of Palestine alongside Israel.

The Bayit Yehudi party has openly called for annexing areas ‘C’ and it remains opposed to the ‘two-state solution’.

NOTE: Under the 1993 Oslo Agreements, there are three designations for areas in Yehuda and Shomron.

· Areas ‘A’ are under total exclusive PA (Palestinian Authority) control but Israeli security forces maintain a right to enter if and when necessary.

· Areas ‘B’ are under PA civil control but Israeli security control.

· Areas ‘C’ are under exclusive Israel control.

The latter includes area where yishuvim and cities are present in Yehuda and Shomron including Maale Adumim, Ariel, Efrat and Gush Etzion yishuvim.

Ben-Artzi backs the plan that was presented by Bayit Yehudi leader Minister Naftali Bennett, to permit total PA full autonomous control over areas ‘A’ and ‘B’ while areas ‘C’, which are home to 50,000 Arabs, would become an integral portion of Israel as was done with the Golan Heights. Ben-Artzi made his remarks while visiting the Women in Green’s ’33-hour vigil’ near the Prime Minister’s Residence.

Ben-Artzi calls on Bennet to become more active in promoting and advancing his plan and in light of Likud refusal, to begin developing a larger stronger nationalist camp.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)