Netanyahu Excluded Ben Gvir Because of He Demanded the elimination of Hamas

 

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir was interviewed on Channel 12 News on Saturday night and commented on the surprise October 7 attack by Hamas, sparing no criticism from the Prime Minister.

"Netanyahu excluded me [from Cabinet discussions] and the truth must also be told, he excluded me on the basis that I demanded targeted eliminations [of terrorists]. His people said that I constantly wanted to set the region on fire. There was a mistake in the concept, both by Netanyahu and by others. I hope everyone understands that the concept was wrong," Ben Gvir said, before clarifying, "I have responsibility, I am a member of the government. But they didn't listen to me - they excluded me."

"There was a 'concept camp' here that talked about containment [of Hamas] and that Hamas was deterred, including Gantz, Bennett and Eizenkot. Stop beautifying history," added Ben Gvir. "When I joined this government, I thought differently - that targeted eliminations were needed. Maybe I should have pounded on the table. You can't come and tell me today that I didn't do all this – because of that, I was excluded from the Cabinet meetings."

Ben Gvir was asked if Netanyahu should resign and go to new elections, but dodged the question. "I'm sure that after the war everyone will be held accountable. Netanyahu will give clear answers. Right now I'm calling to conquer the Gaza Strip."

The minister also said, "I'm not shying away, the Prime Minister was also into a lot of concepts that today have been proven to clearly have been a mistake. I'm still fighting the ‘concept’. What are these pauses [in the fighting]? How can you allow pauses? I say to Netanyahu, go on a public diplomacy campaign in the US. The Americans wouldn't even let a bottle of water in. Let's spread the word in the US from coast to coast."