Thousands of right-wing Israelis protested in Jerusalem Wednesday evening against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to suspend construction of West Bank settlements, dpa reported.
Dozens of buses transported settlers from all over the occupied territory as well as supporters from elsewhere in Israel to the rally in central Jerusalem.
The protesters held up signs, some of which read "God's Bible gave us this land" and wore T-shirts declaring, "Freeze the freeze."
"The history of Israel cannot be frozen," said a settler leader addressing the crowd, in what he said was a message to Netanyahu and the White House.
"We are afraid that the freeze won't last only 10 months. Netanyahu is a weak leader and he will follow the pressures of the United States and the European Union," David, a supporter of the settlements from Jerusalem, told the German Press-Agency dpa.
"To give back Judea and Samaria will be the end of Israel," warned the 50-year-old, using the Hebrew Biblical names for the southern and northern West Bank respectively.
Netanyahu announced the partial construction moratorium last week, saying he hoped it would prompt Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to revive peace talks with him.
But the Palestinians have rejected the move because the 10-month building suspension does not include East Jerusalem, nor a few thousand housing units in West Bank settlements whose construction has already begun. Public buildings including schools and kindergartens are also exempt.
Abbas has made a full settlement freeze a precondition for reviving negotiations with the government of the hardline Netanyahu, which took office some eight months ago. The negotiations have been suspended since late last year, as Israel headed into new elections.