Bennett to EU: ‘We’ll destroy your construction in Area C’

Defense Minister Naftali Bennett (New Right) met this week with European Union’s (EU) ambassador in Israel, telling him that Israel’s defense organizations are no longer willing to make peace with the uncontrolled illegal construction in Area C encouraged and funded by Europe.

According to a Makor Rishon report, Bennett said that the defense system intends to destroy all illegal construction in areas under complete Israeli control, including that which Europeans funded.

Attending the meeting were representatives from Germany, France, Italy, Holland, and Denmark.

In a security briefing, Bennett spoke with the representatives about the actions Israel took to prevent Iran from entrenching itself in Syria, the situation with Gaza, and the illegal construction in Area C of Judea and Samaria, which he described as “a waste of money.”

“If you want to invest in the Palestinians, it’s worth focusing on humanitarian activities and not illegal construction,” Bennett said.

The representatives responded negatively to the statement, but did not argue.

Under the Oslo Accords, Judea and Samaria were divided into three parts: Area A is under full Palestinian Authority (PA) civil and security control. Area B is under PA civil control, while Israel controls security. Area C is under full Israeli civil and security control.

While Arabs live in all three areas, Jews are confined to Area C only, and accidentally entering Area A presents a risk to a Jew’s life.

For several years, the EU has been breaching the Oslo Accords by funding an “illegal PA takeover” of Area C, in an attempt to allow the PA to annex it illegally.