Israeli residents of Efrat and the rest of the Gush Etzion sector, part of the Sovereignty Movement, demonstrated at the Gush Etzion junction on Tuesday afternoon, as Prime Minister Naftali Bennett was boarding a plane to head to Washington DC.
Bennett is slated to meet with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday, and with President Joe Biden on Thursday at the White House.
The Sovereignty Movement said in a statement that although Bennett is going to the US for “discussions of great importance to our future, the steps taken prior to his trip are not encouraging.”
Those steps, as delineated by movement leaders Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, included:
1. Reduction of building permits in Jewish communities
2. Building permits for Arabs in Area C
3. A linkage between Arab and Jewish building
4. An American demand for a Palestinian consulate in Jerusalem
5. Cessation of construction on route 60
6. A delayed response to shooting from Gaza
7. The consensus regarding Gush Etzion has been compromised.
“Stand strong against a weak government which is abandoning its allies,” the two leaders said.
“No to a Palestinian state! No to the partition of Jerusalem! Preserve the property of the Jewish people and the Land of Israel!”
Finally, they added, “Apply sovereignty!”