The Minister of National Security, the far-right Itamar Ben Gvir, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this Sunday of having made a “serious mistake” by participating in the upcoming talks on a possible ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, promoted by a draft of the United States, and assured that such a thing would amount to a capitulation to the Islamist terrorist group Hamas.
“We are crushing Hamas,” Ben Gvir said in an interview with Radio 103 FM. “So should we now go to a conference and give up? “It is a serious mistake by the Prime Minister (Benjamin Netanyahu).”
On August 8, the mediating countries demanded that Israel and Hamas “resume urgent talks” on August 15 – in Doha or Cairo – to “close all remaining gaps and begin implementing the agreement without further delay.”
The initiative received widespread support from the international community, and Israel – still awaiting an attack from Iran and Hezbollah following the elimination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran – agreed to send a delegation.
Yesterday, in a similar tone, Treasury Secretary, ultranationalist Bezalel Smotrich, called on the United States to “respect Israeli democracy and the position of its officials,” after White House national security spokesman John Kirby warned on Friday that the U.S. government will not allow “extremists” to derail ceasefire talks.
In his and restore his power to return and attack Israel.
Since December last year, the possibility of an agreement to release Israeli hostages held in Gaza in exchange for a ceasefire has stalled.
The mediators’ current proposal is based on principles outlined in May by US President Joe Biden, which include a six-week first phase with a complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from all populated areas of the Gaza Strip and several hostages that would be exchanged for Palestinian terrorists held in prisons in Israel.
Agencies contributed to this Aurora article
