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National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir published on Thursday a post on the X platform in which he wrote in English, “Hamas ❤️ Biden.” The minister later decided to take his tweet to local Israeli news outlets against the backdrop of U.S. President Joe Biden’s decision to halt the delivery of munitions to Israel amid an impending operation in Gaza’s Rafah.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid was quick to respond to Ben-Gvir - and called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dismiss him. "If Netanyahu doesn’t dismiss Ben-Gvir today, he puts every IDF soldier and every citizen of the State of Israel at risk," he wrote on his X account.
Ben-Gvir's tweet comes just days after Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chiklii, tweeted in response to Hamas’ proposal for a hostage deal last week a sticker with the caption "FCK HMS" ("F*ck Hamas").
Following Ben-Gvir's post, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also published a message in English addressing Biden's threats. " As we approach our Independence Day, we are reminded, yet again, that our War of Independence is still ongoing. When the state of Israel was established, we were compelled to declare our statehood despite the strong opposition of Marshall, the Secretary of State," he wrote.
"Once again, today, we will achieve complete victory in this war despite President Biden’s push back and arms embargo. We simply have no choice as this war is an existential one and anything other than complete victory will put the existence of the Jewish state in danger.”
President Isaac Herzog also commented Ben-Gvir's post in remarks at a ceremony to mark Victory Day over Nazi Germany. “This is a notable opportunity to thank the State of Israel’s allies also today, and especially to our greatest ally the United States of America. I would like to say thank you to President Biden who is a great friend of the State of Israel, and who proved as such from the first day of the war.
"In the context of this morning’s news, it is important for me to say that even when there are disagreements and moments of disappointment between friends and allies, there is a way to clarify the disputes and it is beholden upon all of us to avoid baseless, irresponsible and insulting statements and tweets that harm the national security and the interests of the State of Israel,” Herzog said.
In a dramatic statement that raises tensions with the United States to a new high, U.S. President Joe Biden has threatened to stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if it starts a large-scale military operation in Rafah, beyond the more limited operation that is currently underway which focuses only on the Rafah crossing itself.
In an interview with CNN aired overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, Biden said that heavy bombs, the kind of which his government is already delaying a large shipment, caused the widespread killing of civilians in the Strip; according to the president, if Israel begins the more extensive operation that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu keeps promising to carry out he will not be willing to supply these weapons.