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Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Wednesday that he holds Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responsible for Israel failing to conquer the entire Gaza Strip. The far-right senior member of Netanyahu's coalition released his statement after media reports that he threatened IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir with dismissal during the security cabinet meeting on Tuesday, after he also refused to hear a briefing from Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
According to the reports, Smotrich attacked Zamir when the IDF chief said troops would not be tasked with the distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza, after Israel once again allowed aid to be delivered to the Strip. Aid deliveries were suspended in March to prevent them from reaching Hamas.
Zamir responded to Defense Minister Israel Katz, who said that the cabinet must decide how aid would be distributed to the civilian population in Gaza, when Israel decides to renew its delivery. He said it could be the task of the IDF or of American contractors.
"With all due respect, the IDF does not choose its assignments," Smotrich told Zamir. "We will define the policy and you will carry it out. If you are not able to, we will bring in someone who is," he said.
Smotrich then told the military chief that he was dissatisfied with the conduct of the war and that Israel should transition to a decisive phase. "We waited patiently for a new chief of staff so that we could move forward. This war cannot continue this way," he said.
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Trucks carrying humanitarian aid at the Rafah crossing after Israel bloks their entry to the Gaza Strip last March
(Photo: AFP)
The finance minister had demanded that Israel occupy all of Gaza and establish military rule, to ensure Hamas could no longer be in power in the Strip. He had come under fire on Tuesday after he said in an interview that defeating Hamas was the ultimate primary goal in the war and not the release of hostages.
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Smotrich's conduct during the cabinet meeting could also be attributed to reporting early that evening, by Israel's public broadcaster Kan, that revealed that Netanyahu had decided that Gaza would not come under Israeli military rule but had kept that decision from his far-right coalition partners, including Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Netanyahu ended the security cabinet meeting without reaching any decisions and said the matter would be discussed again the next time the cabinet convenes.