Minister of Science, Technology and Space, Ofir Akunis, raised his concerns regarding the condemnation of the passage of the Regulation Law by the UN and European nations. He added that it was unnecessary and that Judean and Samarian Arabs should welcome the law openly.
Speaking to Arutz Sheva, an Israeli news publication, Minister Akunis said that he outright rejects the condemnations regarding the Regulation Law which are heard globally, specifically in Europe. He added, "If it was up to Europe, moving a flower pot from one room to another in the Judea and Samaria communities would also receive condemnations."
The Minister expressed his ideas boldly stating that he believed it was a "legitimate right" for Arabs and even "the duty of the Knesset as a symbol of the Jewish people's sovereignty." He also openly disapproved of those who stated that the Supreme Court would not uphold the Regulation Law.
Minister Akunis affirmed his stance by stating that he had no doubts that "most of the MKs who are condemning the Regulation Law" did not bother to even read it. He went so far as to claim that the European and global foreign ministers who condemned the law did not read it either.
The Regulation Law states that Palestinians in ownership of land will be compensated by means of a monetary sum or a different tract of land. Akunis said that the Regulation Law is valuable to the Arabs of Samaria and Judea. He expressed his doubts from the start and asked if any such arrangement existed before for the Palestinians.
"I even said that the Palestinians should be the first to welcome the Regulation Law, but when there is no serious discussion, and when the statements of the opposition and various political entities in Israel border on the absurd, then we find ourselves listening to this unnecessary argument."
