Hours after Palestinian and Israeli sources confirmed a meeting between the president of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas and Israel's Minister of Defense Benny Gantz, a radio interview with the Israeli Minister of Communications Yoaz Hendel sparked controversy after he described Abbas as "a municipality and traffic officer".
Speaking to a local Israeli radio channel, Yoaz Hendel who is often described as a "liberal nationalist with a right-wing pragmatic approach", expressed indifference to the news of the Abbas-Gantz meeting saying he "personally wouldn't have met with Abbas".
Hendel then told journalist Asaf Liberman that "It is still in the interest of the state of Israel not to worry about traffic and other municipal matters in the PA".
הגדרה מדויקת של סיפוח הגדה המערבית: נשאיר להם,לפלסטינים, את הנושאים המוניציפליים ותחבורה. בדרום אפריקה הישנה קראו לשיטת הקנטונים המפוזרים האלה, בנטוסטאנים.
— Shemuel Meir (@ShemuelMeir) December 29, 2021
Translation: "This is the accurate definition of the annexation of the West Bank: "We will leave to them, the Palestinians, the municipal issues and transportation". In old South Africa, these scattered cantons were called Bantustans".
لا اعتقد انها تصريحات مهينة! بالعكس، وصف دقيق للغاية من وزير الاتصالات الصهيوني، بل انه مؤدب ومتواضع في وصفه! https://t.co/jxuoBrabYW
— DISPOSSESSED (@FiliSapien) December 29, 2021
Translation: "I don't see these statements offensive. On the contrary, this is an accurate description by the Israeli minister of communications. One that is too polite and a decent description."
These statements have triggered several online conversations over Israel's interest in maintaining the Palestinian Authority, especially at a time the Israeli ruling right-wing has been extremely in favor of annexing the West Bank and ending the Palestinian quest for statehood.
Mahmoud Abbas has been head of the Palestinian Authority since 2005.
The Palestinian Authority was established as governing body over the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in 1994 following the Oslo Agreement between Palestinians represented by the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Israeli government as an interim body for five years only, one that was supposed to be the foundation of a fully independent Palestinian government by 1999.
Since 2006, The PA's control has been limited to the West Bank only after Hamas took full control of the Gaza Strip following the 2005 elections.
