Former prime minister Naftali Bennett calls the current conflict “the harshest event since the War of Independence.”
Speaking to Channel 12 news from southern Israel, Bennett elaborates: “This is not the Yom Kippur War — it is Yom Kippur multiplied by 100, because here we are talking about murder, the systematic slaughter of babies, girls, boys, things that are hard to bear.”
“We set up a Jewish state in this land in order to defend ourselves, and now the time has come to fight back,” he says.
“We have to lift up our heads… we are heroic people,” Bennett adds, citing acts of heroism by residents of Kfar Aza, Nahal Oz, Netiv Ha’Asara and other communities where “heroes confronted the terrorists,” killed some of them, and in some cases were killed. “We are a people of lions,” he says.
Ultimately, says Bennett, this is a war against Iran, “the octopus” which is “conducting” Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah.
He says he does not want to give advice to Prime Minister Netanyahu, but, asked about a ground incursion, says there must be a specific purpose for every soldier sent into action.
He says he had to raise $4 million overseas to finance hotels for Sderot residents, and notes that there are families who have nothing and urgently need government help. “There are children with trauma… Families who were trapped in a safe room for 16 hours” with terrorists outside, and where the father was holding the door closed with a terrorist on the other side.
“When we are facing the Iranian enemy — Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, Iran — we are facing a Nazi conception,” Bennett says. “I’ve not said this in the past. I never conceived that they would come and slaughter, cut the throats of children. These are animals. Not a state enemy. We have to deal with this as though they are Nazis. What we would do to Nazis, to do to them.”
“This is the worst period in the history of the state,” he repeats, but the government must utilize the incredible resilience and energy of the people. “We have a wonderful people and we will prevail.”
@Peloni what both Gallant and Bibi are clearly saying is the IDF will no longer fighting with one hand tied behind its back like in some of the previous rounds. No lawyer’s will be running this war.
Bottom line Hamas has succeeded in making it crystal clear that there is no room on earth for them above ground.
@Bear
Yes, of course this is true, but as PM, it was incumbent upon Bibi to lead this group in committing to doing as Gallant has now signalled, ie making an end of Hamas and not just addressing their ‘capabilities’ as had previously been stated.
@Felix
I share your concern, but it should be clarified that the concern was due to a lack of clarity in stating that the erasure of Hamas was the goal of this current exercise. Gallant has now come out and added the clarity needed in the article Ted posted about three hours after my earlier post expressing my concerns. The decided determination that this should not be another venture of mowing the grass was what was needed. As Glick stated in an update made earlier today, we need to be ripping up the grass, not mowing it, and from Gallant’s statement, it would appear that this is the decision which has been made.
Peloni
I am trying to digest the issues raised. It is difficult for me because I do not accept the terms.
Your long post 6.16pm
You refer to the imprecision of aims of Israeli leadership
How then can they succeed? What are they fighting for?
United Hatzlaha (Volunteer Rescue Organization) in Israel has run out of medical supplies and needs to replenish them. I will be donating. I ask anyone who can please donate and pass the link on to friends. Ted please put this request in a main article
https://israelrescue.org/donate/
@Peloni the inner Cabinet or Security Cabinet must be the ones’s making the decisions in Israel and until now always have. I believe that will occur. This Bibi and a few other leaders.
@Bear
Bibi has committed to destroying Hamas’ political and military ‘capabilities’, not to destroy Hamas specifically. The ambiguity in this term, capabilities, references the ambiguity which I referenced in my earlier post to you, and in this I am not alone in having concerns.
Gen. Avivi has just held a War Briefing in which he specifically raised this issue and the lack of committent which it potentially indicates about destroying Hamas utterly. As he noted, if the complete removal of Hamas is not achieved, or not the aim of the war, what is the point? Hamas will rebuild, rearm, and we return to the same problem in just a few years. So, his concerns are my concerns, and as he further explains, pursuing such an aim as is needed will be very costly, and the Military will oppose doing this, but Bibi must pursue a Ben Gurion policy of telling his generals what to do, rather than the opposite.
Contrary to Avivi’s suggestions, Gantz has required that the generals, not Bibi, should be making these decisions, which again was what I alluded to in my earlier post.
@Bear
Wikipedia
@Peloni except for destroying Hamas I do not think any war goals have been decided or if yes they have not been expressed publicly.
Israel is trying to get Gazans to flee this is obvious. Bibi said as much and Arab language messages on social media to Gazans telling them were to go to get out of fire for now.
Egypt has closed Rafah crossing to Egypt. So the Gazans would have to break through there to escape or go via Sea. I would say some NGO or rich third party should rent Cruise Ships or large Cargo Ships to collect the Gazans. Send them to Libya, Iran and Turkey.
@Bear
Yes, this moment requires that we rise above political grievances, even as Gantz can not help himself from defying this need. I am not fond of Bennett as I hold many grievances against him, but all of that is quite irrelevant to he very basic truth of which he is advocating here. I do find it curious that the war aims declared by Bibi’s govt have not been so clear as Bennett’s statement, and if Gantz is to have his way in joining the govt, and if Glick/Mumser are correct in what he is demanding, the US influence over the Israeli military will be controlling the war, and this means that Iran will persist for the very same reason that it has never been dealt with thus far – because the US wants Iran and not Israel to dominate the region.
Clearly he is correct it is very basic. Whether one liked Bennett as a politician or not this a 100% correct statement.
@Hund
“Kindness to the cruel causes cruelty to the kind. – Maimonides
@ Bear Klein:
I hope you’re right.
So many Israeli politicians were brave and excellent soldiers. The best of all of them was Moshe Dayan. And look what he did. He gave the Temple Mount to the muslims.
Do you understand what I am about?
Bennet is an outstanding personality, no doubt about it, but he’s a politician. As such he promised so much and disappointed so much more.
I don’t believe any politician nor their promises..
I’m sorry for my terrible English.
Bennett is 51 and has reported to the Reserves. He is a former Major in Sayeret Makal the most elite commando unit Israel has. In fought in the 2006 Lebanon War.
In how many countries would a former high level politician let alone Prime Minister report to reserve duty.
He is like 99.9 of Israeli Jews unified to defeat the enemy that brutality attacks us.
It’s all good what Mr. Bennett says, but I hope this is not some empty politician’s talk again.
But who am I to judge; I’m not an armchair general.
This all is so horrible.
My feeling is that, Israel must overcome her biggest fear and finally just kick them Muslims ass and be CRUEL (!) to these murderers. No pinpoint strikes anymore.
Otherwise they will never ever let go.
This is the Middle East.
It is even worse than Europe. And remember, Europe, as you all know, all those so sophisticated and so civilizated nations were nothing but the hell. Catholic church, the english crown, the germans, they all collaborated, hand in hand –> holocaust.
This is a religious war started by BARBARIANS 1,400 years ago. Read the mf-ing koran! (And the sira and the hadith if you still don’t understand)
What the so called “palestinians” are doing is nothing about Israel. Apart from that Israel did nothing wrong. It’s the muslim’s 1,400 year long jihad to conquer and subjugate the world.
Please read what Mr. Vic Rosenthal, Abu Yehuda, has to say about it.
http://abuyehuda.com/2023/10/the-catastrophe-of-2023/
G’d bless Israel! Am Yisrael chai!
Every Jew must be armed.