The Palestinian Authority demanded Wednesday «protection» from the international community in view of the expected victory of the right-wing coalition headed by Benjamin Netanyahu in the Israeli legislative elections, which comes with the rise of an openly anti-Arab party such as Religious Zionism.
The Palestinian Prime Minister, Mohamed Shtayé, fears «aggressive policies» following the future rise to power of «racist parties», according to a communiqué reported by the DPA agency. «We had no hope that the elections would result in a partner for peace,» he admitted.
Shtayé also assured that there are hardly any differences between the political parties in Israel, to the extent that they would be comparable «to the difference between a Pepsi and a Coca-Cola», for which he promised to continue fighting the occupation and to work in favor of an independent Palestinian state.
Netanyahu is expected to govern with the support of the ultra-right, to which he may grant key competences in security matters. All this in a context marked by an increase in operations against alleged Palestinian terrorists, which have also resulted in unprecedented levels of violence in the area and more than a hundred deaths since March.
The Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Jan Egeland, expressed his «alarm» at the rising tensions and called for «decisive» international action to prevent the situation from escalating. Egeland, who visited the area, urged Israel to fulfill its obligations as an occupying power.
«Occupation means that Gaza’s teenagers have spent their entire lives under siege and know nowhere else because it can’t get out. It means that West Bank residents can be shot dead, have their charges detained or have their homes demolished,» he said in a statement.
