A CALL TO BUILD BY MAALEH ADUMIM

A show of solidarity with Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim took place last Thursday:

Some 10,000 people marched on Thursday to the E1 area between Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim, where construction has been frozen for years, in a right-wing show of strength aiming at showing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the opposition he can expect if he agrees to the framework peace proposal U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to present to Israel and the Palestinian Authority in the next few weeks.

Participating in the rally were government ministers, deputy ministers, MKs, right-wing activists and other public figures. The demonstrators included Housing and Construction Minister Uri Ariel (Habayit Hayehudi), Agriculture Minister Yair Shamir (Yisrael Beytenu) and Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz (Likud), along with deputy ministers Danny Danon, Zeev Elkin and Tzipi Hotovely from the Likud, sending a clear message to the prime minister.

The rally was organized by right-wing organizations, primarily the Nahala movement headed by settler leader Daniella Weiss. Thursday's demonstration focused on two issues: Construction in E1 and the rest of Judea and Samaria, and Kerry's expected framework proposal.

[...] Deputy Foreign Minister Zeev Elkin also quoted Netanyahu.

"This is our land; we have a right to build on it. The large public gathered here today came to say one very clear thing to the leaders: Your obligation is not to the nations of the world but to the citizens of Israel. It is important to build in Mevaseret Adumim and in other places in Judea and Samaria," Elkin said, [...]

Demonstrators held signs calling Kerry a "persona non grata" who was pressuring Israel to make "suicidal concessions."

It's time for Netanyahu to prove he's capable of standing up to Kerry's offensive positions and building in the E1 district.