Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday evening spoke with i24NEWS about incidents of violence by a small minority of Jews in Judea and Samaria, describing the phenomenon as a "affliction" that must be eradicated.
"I am not prepared to accept [these] groups, even if they are groups of young people who come from troubled families," Netanyahu said. "I have brought in the Shin Bet. We will eradicate this affliction. It is absolutely an affliction."
At the same time, the Prime Minister cautioned against drawing conclusions about incidents whose circumstances are still under investigation.
"You need to understand that we are investigating the incident, because many times we have been told things, and afterward it turned out that wasn't exactly what happened," he explained.
Asked whether Iran might attempt an attack ahead of the elections, he responded, "That is a possibility. There are preparations of that kind. Will they be carried out? No. We will do everything to thwart them."
Netanyahu also warned that if such plans were carried out, "There will be a very harsh response."
Regarding the threats against him personally, he said, "They openly declare that they want to eliminate me. So far, we have eliminated them; they have not eliminated us."