BICOM

In the first ever session of its kind, Israel’s Prime Minister participated in a “Prime Minister’s Questions” style session in the Knesset.

Ministers usually take turns to answer unseen questions before the plenum every few weeks and yesterday Benjamin Netanyahu, who also holds several ministerial portfolios, had  his first session lasting almost two hours. At least three quarters of the questions are mandated to come from the opposition benches.

Zionist Union MK Hilik Bar asked about the peace process, while his colleague and former-Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni called for a freeze in West Bank construction. Netanyahu said that he had already taken such a measure for a ten-month period in 2009, but nothing came of it. Turning to Livni, he said : “I shouldn’t have to remind you, you already know that.”

Another Zionist Union MK Zouheir Bahloul questioned how Netanyahu can devote the requisite time to his role as acting Foreign Minister. Netanyahu listed his recent diplomatic activity and said “two more countries are about to renew relations with us and this is only the beginning”.

Netanyahu was also asked by Meretz MK Tamar Zandberg about recent disparaging remarks made by two Orthodox Zionist rabbis about homosexuality and gay people. He replied saying “the comments are unacceptable. The LGBT community is part of us. They are citizens like everyone else”.

The most animated moment of the session came when Zionist Union MK Yael Cohen Paran asked about the veracity of claims from an ongoing inquiry into allegations thought to involve foreign donations and money transfers relating to Netanyahu, his wife and son. He called the allegations “absolute rubbish,” saying that “there is no fire, there is no smoke, there is a lot of hot air”.