Former PM Ehud Barak: Netanyahu will risk hostages’ lives if it makes him ‘look strong’

Former prime minister Ehud Barak attacks Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an interview with Army Radio, saying that the premier is willing to risk the lives of hostages held by terror groups in Gaza since October 7 if it will benefit his image.

“It’s more important to Netanyahu to look strong than to get a deal; he’s willing to risk the hostages’ lives,” Barak says in the radio interview.

The comments come amid reports that a new hostage release deal with Hamas could be within reach after an Israeli delegation of top security officials returned from talks in Paris yesterday.

Barak also calls for protests against the government, after protesters clashed with police at an anti-Netanyahu rally in Tel Aviv last night.

“We need 30,000 citizens circling the Knesset in tents for three weeks, day and night. When the country is shut down, Netanyahu will realize that his time is up and that there is no trust in him,” he says.