Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert renewed his criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and his war in the Gaza Strip, stressing that the path to the safe return of Israeli prisoners passes through “an immediate cessation of the war.”
Olmert wrote in an article published by the newspaper “Haaretz” that “we must not be dragged behind a group of lunatics and savages who want more blood and settlement in Gaza.”
He added, “The fighting in Gaza serves Netanyahu and some extremists in his government,” addressing both ministers in the Israeli War Council, Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, “You must leave this bloody government today, or you will bear the burden of the destruction it is causing.”
Regarding Rafah, Olmert said that “Israel should have stopped the operation in Rafah before asking the international community to do so,” noting that “the operation should not have been carried out in Rafah, and instead go to conclude a deal that would return the detainees.”
The former Israeli prime minister wrote, “I have said it before and I will say it again: the war in Gaza is not the primary goal of Itamar Ben Gvir, Bezalel Smotrich and their friends. Their calls to invade Rafah are something secondary compared to their desire to move the war to the West Bank. They talk about Rafah with their tongues, while the former Israeli Prime Minister Their hearts remember Judea and Samaria (the name the Israelis give to the West Bank).
Olmert repeatedly criticized Netanyahu’s government, saying, a few days ago, that the war on Gaza actually ended 3 months ago, and there is no reason to claim that it will continue, stressing the necessity of reaching a deal to restore the detainees and withdraw the army from the Strip.