The panel will be broad cast live on the FB page of the Sovereignty Movement
The three days of the gathering of senior figures of the national camp will begin with a panel joined by ministers, members of Knesset and public figures for a discussion on how to implement the vision of Israeli sovereignty in Judea and Samaria.
The Leumiada, the colorful flagship event of the national camp, will open today Thursday January 10th,with a special panel, led by the Sovereignty Movement and will deal with the vision of sovereignty and how to implement it. Ministers, members of Knesset and other senior figures will participate.
The Leumiada event, which is considered one of the most significant demonstrations of senior members of the national camp in Israeli politics, will begin in Eilat today (Thursday) and will continue until Saturday night, and the sovereignty panel will constitute the starting point for all discussions that will be held during the event.
The panel will include Minister Ze’ev Elkin, Minister Haim Katz, Deputy Minister MK Michael Oren, Deputy Minister MK Tzipi Hotovely, MK Bezalel Smotrich, Head of Jordan Valley Council David Elhiani, Bassam Eid, one of the most prominent Arab critics of the PA, former Israeli Ambassador to Washington Yoram Ettinger, and settlement activist in the Likud Movement Shevah Stern, who, together with his partner, Natan Englesman, promoted the adoption of the idea of sovereignty within the ranks and institutions of the party.
The panel will be led by journalist and publicist Shimon Riklin and the heads of the Sovereignty Movement, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, are the ones who organized it and brought it to fruition. During the discussion, MKs and various other people are expected, among other things, to hold a sort of accounting in summary of the last term of Knesset in order to discern whether and how much the vision of sovereignty has been advanced during the years of this government’s term.
The participants will also discuss ways to implement the idea of sovereignty in light of regional and international changes and in light of what is defined as the historic window of opportunity that the Trump administration provides for the advancement of Israeli interests in the political arena. Moreover, the participants will also deal with the position of the Palestinian Authority, whether it contributes to a regional solution or serves as an obstacle.
The co-chairwomen of the Sovereignty Movement, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, who are preparing the event, note the importance of the panel, especially in the Leumiada, which is a general expression of the entire national camp and not only some sort of fringe parties. “The fact that the organizers of the Leumiada chose the vision of sovereignty to be the opening topic of three days, demonstrates this importance, tells us about the importance of the idea and how it is the only political-diplomatic answer that the national camp can and must advocate”, say Katsover and Matar, who remind us that the conference is being held exactly a year after the decision of the Likud Central Committee that the party would strive toward the application of Israeli sovereignty in Judea and Samaria. “One year after that decision, the time has come to see how many practical steps have been taken to realize the declaration that was an ideological milestone to the movement and its members”.
However, according to them, the hasbara challenge of the vision of sovereignty within Israeli society is still great and must be promoted in every possible way. “Israel’s soul returns to its Land and the People desire to express this by the application of its sovereignty in Judea and Samara, the birthplace of the People. The People in Israel want to see its leaders guide it toward the vision and with this panel that we will hold tomorrow, we will hear from the decision-makers in the government and the Knesset, how the practical steps are being carried out toward implementation of the Zionist and historical vision of the return of the People of Israel’s sovereignty to its Land”.
Katsover and Matar conclude with words of gratitude to the organizers of the Leumiada: Moshiko Pasal, Moshe ben Zaken and Nir ben Simon. “These three people understand the importance of the vision as a diplomatic and political goal post for the entire national camp, and from this deep understanding they specifically chose the topic of sovereignty to be the opening shot for the entire Leumiada, and for this, we express our thanks and appreciation.
