Benjamin Netanyahu spoke out against a two-state solution. The Israeli prime minister has the support of the majority of the country. The Biden administration participated in his parade. There is a conflict between Israel and its protecting power.
Joe Biden, Antony Blinken and all the other world leaders can talk about Israel and its prime minister; they can beg, appeal, demand and pressure for a two-state solution and a Palestinian state. But Benjamin Netanyahu does not waver or give in. That's the signal Israel's prime minister sent recently at a press conference. “The Prime Minister must also be able to say no, even to our best friends.”
The long-time prime minister, who has been in office for 16 years with two interruptions, has always boasted since the October 7 terrorist attack that he prevented the creation of a Palestinian state. The 74-year-old seemed to see this as a lasting legacy of his reign. For the first time, he publicly expressed his opposition to a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip – a model that not only the US president and his foreign minister are envisioning as a post-war scenario, but also the leaders of the Arab countries of the world. Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi crown prince, even made this a condition for recognizing Israel and for a peace agreement.