Ya’alon: Netanyahu culture of ‘generating hatred’ a greater threat than terrorism

Israel’s hawkish former defense minister is attacking the government as corrupt and extreme — pledging to challenge it in the next election.

Moshe Ya’alon tells foreign reporters that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government “didn’t demonstrate its responsibility” and had undermined the country’s democratic values.

Ya’alon, who now heads a new political movement, says the extremist culture of “generating hatred for short-term political benefits” posed a greater challenge to Israel than Islamic militants.

A former IDF chief, Ya’alon was forced to resign last year after Netanyahu expanded his coalition government and offered the defense post to Avigdor Liberman, a firebrand leader of a hardline nationalist party.

Netanyahu and Ya’alon had been at odds following a series of disagreements between political hardliners and IDF leaders, with Ya’alon backing the military.

— AP