Ben Gvir slams 'grave mistake,' as MKs in PM's Likud lament 'immoral decision'; right-wing hostage families voice shock at move, which leaders repeatedly insisted wouldn't be made
www.timesofisrael.com
Right-wing politicians and groups assailed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s
abrupt decision Sunday evening to resume humanitarian aid to all parts of the Gaza Strip, which came after repeated pledges by top officials, including by Defense Minister Israel Katz, not to do so until a new Hamas-circumventing aid mechanism was put in place.
Netanyahu ordered the immediate resumption of “basic” humanitarian aid into Gaza amid mounting US pressure to end a monthslong blockade. The move was approved during a security cabinet meeting at the recommendation of military officials who reportedly warned that food supplies belonging to the UN and aid groups had completely run out, creating an acute humanitarian crisis.
Any humanitarian aid that enters the Strip… will fuel Hamas and give it oxygen while our hostages languish in tunnels,” lamented National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who earlier this year bolted the government over the announcement of a ceasefire-hostage deal, and then returned when fighting resumed.
“The prime minister is making a grave mistake with this move, which doesn’t even have a majority,” Ben Gvir argued in a statement. “We must crush Hamas and not simultaneously give it oxygen
The Tikva Forum, which represents a hawkish group of families of hostages held in Gaza, said it was “shocked” by the decision “to give Hamas a gift without getting anything back, while our loved ones have been starved for almost 600 days.”
The forum urged Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich to work against the step, adding: “If a drop of supplies gets to the enemy, this isn’t only a betrayal of the hostages, but also a stab in the back of the IDF fighters who are currently risking their lives in the war.”
There was no immediate response from Smotrich, who three weeks ago told the Makor Rishon newspaper: “If a single speck of humanitarian aid enters [Gaza] and reaches Hamas, I will be leaving the government. I can’t live with it… For me it’s a red line. I told the prime minister — I don’t agree, over my dead body. I won’t sit in the government for a single minute"
The cerebus of israel. Hopefully theres some follow through