Ex-PM Bennett rips government over response to Hezbollah attacks: North ‘is going up in flames’

Amid the major fires in the north sparked by Hezbollah attacks, former prime minister Naftali Bennett tears into the government, charing that “the country is not being managed” and is devoid of leadership.

“These are tough days, but the sense that there’s someone in charge, even in difficult times, is not a luxury. It’s an existential need,” Bennett says in a statement.

“We must save the north. The Galilee is going up in flames. The fire is spreading,” he continues, referring to Hezbollah’s intensified rocket and drone attacks.

“Beautiful and flourishing places have turned into heaps of rubble. Some residents who were evacuated are already planning their lives elsewhere. This is a grave strategic event and can in no way be normalized.”

Bennett goes on warns “the north’s abandonment is dangerous for our future” and calls on the government and security chiefs “to chart a new course.”

“The prime minister must begin to manage, and now,” he adds.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid meanwhile hits out at far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, whose ministry oversees the fire service, for attending an event in Jerusalem as blazes raged across the north.

“There has never been a more reckless government in the country’s history. They just don’t care. Not about the north, the south or the hostages,” Lapid charges.