Netanyahu threatens to expand occupation

Israel will ‘take measures’ if the UN decides to recognise the state of Palestine, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton on Friday. Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoted a senior government official said both Netanyahu and Foreign Affairs Minister Avigdor Lieberman warned Ashton that the PA's UN bid would be a "game-changing move" that would spark unilateral Israeli measures in response. He added "We're asking all these states to carefully consider this action. Senior politicians in Israel met the EU foreign policy chief on Wednesday. The newspaper reported that Lieberman told Ashton that the Foreign Ministry has prepared a "toolbox" of possible responses, ranging from relatively mild steps - like revoking PA officials' VIP passes or cancelling work permits for Palestinians in Israel - to severe measures like approving construction of thousands of new houses in the settlements or halting tax transfers to the PA. The latter could result in the PA's financial collapse. Liberman added that Israel could even declare Abbas "irrelevant," meaning it would sever all dealings with him, just as it did with his predecessor, Yasser Arafat. The newspaper quoted senior officials in the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the Palestinian Authority's bid for UN recognition as a non-member observer state could lead to a new intifada or the PA's collapse, Israeli diplomats are warning countries worldwide as part of an intensive diplomatic campaign against the move. According to the newspaper, the Foreign Ministry officials said the risk is exacerbated by the timing: The PA is expected to seek a vote in the UN General Assembly next month, at which point Israel's election campaign will be in full swing, with several parties holding primaries in late November. This is liable to lead ministers and Knesset members to vie with each other over who can offer a tougher response. During his meeting on Thursday in Ramallah with Catherine Ashton, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stressed that the Palestinian efforts in UN General Assembly aims to the two-state solution which is declining because the Israeli government refuses to be committed to the international legitimacy decisions, and insists on proceeding with settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, specially in occupied Jerusalem.