From the Liveblog of
Monday, September 23, 2024
While not in running to become defense minister, Sa’ar hails gov’t response to Hezbollah
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Only days after announcing he would not join the government as defense minister, New Hope chief Gideon Sa’ar praises its decision to launch a massive strike on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon.
In a statement, Sa’ar calls the strikes “an important move in crushing the system built around Israel by the Iranian axis for over two decades.”
Israel must “not stop, not let up until the goal of returning the residents of the north safely to their homes is achieved,” he says. “We will continue to support any action for the security of Israel and its citizens.”
In a previous statement on Saturday evening, the former Likud MK said he had been offered the defense portfolio by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but he turned it down because of the situation in the north.
Netanyahu declined to comment on Sa’ar’s statement when asked about it by lawmakers during a closed session of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Sunday.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, a harsh critic of the government‘s wartime policies, also backs its decision to launch a massive attack on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.
“Assassinations, one thousand targets struck a day, damage to strategic assets. This is how Israeli deterrence is restored,” he tweets.
The Times of Israel Community.