Excerpts from PM Netanyahu's Remarks at the Start of his Meeting with
Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentilloni

(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today (Tuesday, 30 June 2015), met with
Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentilloni and said at the start of their
meeting:

"I would like to send my best wishes for a rapid and full recovery to the
Israeli citizens who were wounded last night in the terrorist attack near
Shilo and to the soldier who was stabbed near Rachel's Tomb. Attempts to
attack us do not halt even for a moment. The ISA and IDF have foiled dozens
of terrorist attacks since the start of the year and over 200 since the
start of 2014. We are determined to take strong action and deal with the
terrorists to the fullest extent of the law. The fact that up until now, the
Palestinian Authority has not condemned these attacks needs to bother not
only us, but also the international community as a whole. Those who do not
take an unequivocal stand against terrorism cannot wash their hands.

Today, after years of discussions, we will present the outline that we
formulated on extracting gas from the sea. It will be presented to all
Israeli citizens, before the entire nation. This outline breaks up the gas
monopoly and will put hundreds of billions of shekels into the treasury for
Israeli citizens' social welfare, health, education and many other needs.
Populism is surging around us. Nobody has really examined this outline and
now it will be possible to do so. I have never given in to populism. I have
enacted many reforms that saved the Israeli economy in the face of strong
opposition and today, with the perspective of 10-15 years, it is possible to
judge how the Israeli economy has jumped forward while other economies that
have not enacted these reforms and did not act as we did, and capitulated to
populism – how they have been shaken, some to the point of collapse. I can
also say that for some of them the gas has remained underground. This cannot
be allowed to happen here. I trust in the common sense of Israel's citizens
and I expect the public's representatives to act responsibly. We will do our
utmost so that the gas is extracted from the sea."