From the Liveblog of
Thursday, December 14, 2023
In swipe at PM, Gantz blasts those trying to drive wedge between Israel and US
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
War cabinet minister Benny Gantz appears to take a shot at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling out those “engaged in manufactured disputes” and harming Israel’s ties with the Biden administration.
During a press conference from Tel Aviv, Gantz carefully avoids identifying Netanyahu by name, but the same accusation was voiced yesterday by Opposition chairman Yair Lapid who did make a point of calling out the premier more directly.
“The role of the leadership is to matter of factly tell the public what will happen and strive toward [that goal] without creating manufactured disputes when our soldiers are fighting side-by-side on the battlefield,” Gantz says.
“Unfortunately, even in these very days, there are those who are engaged in creating manufactured disputes within the public and harming the important relations with the United States.”
The National Unity leader appears to be referring to the effort by Netanyahu to double and triple down on his rhetoric against the idea of the Palestinian Authority returning to govern Gaza after the war. This has been the stated goal of the Biden administration, though it also acknowledges that there will have to be a transition period before the PA is ready and that the PA will need to be “revitalized” first.
Netanyahu’s rhetoric has frustrated US efforts to rally Arab leaders to assist in post-war Gaza strategizing, US and Arab officials have told The Times of Israel.
