Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert wrote an article in Haaretz newspaper in which he launched a violent attack on the current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accusing him of deliberately prolonging the war against the Palestinian resistance factions and abandoning prisoners.
Olmert attributed the reason for the current Prime Minister’s desire to prolong the fighting without setting a date for its end to the failure to set precise goals for the combat forces.
He said, “I accuse the Israeli Prime Minister of intending to expand the scope of the war and begin a direct and comprehensive military confrontation with Hezbollah in the north, instead of reaching an agreement with the Lebanese government, with French and American mediation, that puts an end to the current violent conflict and allows tens of thousands of residents to Northern Israel who were displaced by the fighting to return to their homes.
Netanyahu was also accused of “taking deliberate actions aimed at causing the outbreak of widespread violence in the West Bank, knowing that this would lead to an expansion of war crimes against Palestinians who are not involved in terrorism in any way.”
He added that these crimes are already being committed by many Israelis. They are usually not military conscripts, but private militias made up of thugs carrying weapons that were handed over to them, in most cases, as part of a “questionable process requiring legal review,” initiated by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
He continued that these militias use these weapons in “riots and protect them when they treat the Palestinians brutally, burning their property and destroying the fields that constitute a source of life and livelihood for them, as well as deliberately killing innocent people.”
Olmert went on to level charges against Netanyahu, including “deliberately abandoning” the Israeli prisoners held by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), under the pretext that this prevents achieving “total victory,” which was never, in his opinion, his choice.
The former prime minister claimed that complete victory was intended to be an impossible goal to allow Netanyahu, at will, to shift the blame for the failure onto the army and Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy, who is leading the military operation in the Gaza Strip.
He added that the current Prime Minister of Israel, along with his agents, family members, and media mouthpieces, have continued to launch a systematic campaign against the military, security, and political leaders, “who stand idly by” when he delivers his speeches without doing anything.
Olmert added that this is expected from leaders who remain dominant in determining military, security and diplomatic priorities.
He continued his attack on Netanyahu and said that he was spreading poison, and accused him of incitement and contempt, and of working to undermine the confidence of the Israeli people in those who assume leadership in times of war.
He also accused him of forming a security government “that includes a small group of people who lack the skills, experience or understanding of the highly complex system” that is supposed to provide endless services and deal with endless problems.
He added that it is clear that this government is biased towards the personal interests of the ministers and the parties they represent and the interests of the population groups known to support them, while a large segment of the people are suffering under the weight of the hardships resulting from the repercussions of the war in Gaza.
He concluded that the natural result of this “miserable” diversity of government members is an unprecedented collapse of all services that the public needs in normal circumstances, especially in light of the very exceptional circumstances that Israel has been experiencing since October 2023.
“The economy is collapsing, public services are crumbling, entire areas are deserted, and the government has no plan and has made no effort that would improve the situation and give (the people) a glimmer of hope,” Olmert said.
Any additional day that this cursed man continues to bear official responsibility for running the state is a day that constitutes a tangible danger to its future and existence.
Olmert was not satisfied with that, but he also accused Netanyahu of deliberately trying to destroy the sensitive fabric of relations vital to Israel’s security with the Arab countries bound to Israel by peace agreements, primarily Egypt and Jordan.
He said that the state is showing public disdain for Egyptian security sensitivities in the Rafah area and the Philadelphia crossing, despite its knowledge that Cairo’s reaction may be by harming the form of relations that have existed between the two countries for decades, pointing out that these relations are a basic infrastructure for protecting Israel’s security interests. .
Olmert also accused Netanyahu of deliberately aborting the opportunity to establish a new regional axis based on a partnership with Arab countries such as Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and perhaps additional Islamic countries outside the Middle East.
Olmert also said that Netanyahu is deliberately seeking to undermine the political, security and military alliance between Israel and the United States.
Based on all these accusations, Olmert demands that Netanyahu appear before the “Israeli People’s Court” without delay, “because every additional day that this cursed man continues to bear official responsibility for running the state is a day that poses a tangible danger to its future and existence,” according to the former prime minister, who adds that it is time to expel Netanyahu.
