Israeli Economy Minister Naftali Bennett. Photo: WikiCommons.

Israeli Economy Minister Naftali Bennett on Tuesday argued that the establishment of a Palestinian state in territory now controlled by Israel would only grant Arabs greater access to attack the Jewish state.

Bennett’s comments were made in a Facebook post alongside a photo showing the view outside his car window as he drove on Route 6 up to northern Israel. Most of the area to the east of the major highway is over the Green Line which at times is less than 100 meters from the road, he said.

“What does this mean? If God forbid a Palestinian State is established here in Israel, the Palestinians will have full control over each car that is traveling north on Route 6,” he wrote. “It will be within the range of guns, stones, and simple missiles. Most Israelis do not know that.”

Israelis travelling on West Bank motorways are often attacked by Arab stone throwers. In a recent report, the Israeli Defense Forces said in 2013 there were 5,000 incidents of Palestinian Arabs throwing rocks at Israelis, equivalent to 75 incidents per day, with half of those along main roads. As a result, 132 Israelis were injured, nearly double the count in 2012.

Bennett has long opposed the creation of a Palestinian state now under discussion in ongoing peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.