Netanyahu's Boss to Blinken: It's Time to Use That 'Big Stick'
The U.S. has supported the Israeli genocide in Gaza
Itamar Ben-Gvir, the convicted racist and Israeli’s clownish national security minister who owns Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that it is not the time to “speak softly to Hamas, it’s time to use that big stick.”
Ben-Gvir did not clarify what he meant by the phrase, but has previously stated that he would disband the country’s war cabinet if the genocide in Gaza is slowed in any way.
Ben-Gvir, the head of Otzma Yehudit, or Jewish Power, a far-right political party, threatened earlier this month to dissolve the fragile extremist government, which would mean Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu would lose his government and face charges that could put him behind bars for years.
Israel’s brutal blockade in Gaza since the 7 October Hamas attack has been effective in choking off Palestinians from food and water—pushing many of the 2.2 million in the coastal enclave on the brink of starvation.
“We are literally starving,” Muhammad Shamalakh, who lives in Rafah with a daughter who needs baby formula, told The Wall Street Journal. “We put water in our child’s baby formula because we don’t have any formula milk.”
Blinken reportedly told Netanyahu during a meeting on Tuesday that Israel must stop harming Palestinian civilians in Gaza, The Times of Israel reported.
“The secretary reaffirmed our support for Israel’s right to prevent the terrorist attacks of October 7 from being repeated and stressed the importance of avoiding further civilian harm and protecting civilian infrastructure in Gaza,” the department said, according to the report.
Yair Lapid, the former Israeli prime minister and opposition leader, said Netanyahu has lost the trust of his people and urged moderates to leave the fragile coalition — including Defence Minister Benny Gantz.
“This is not a unity government; this is not an emergency government. They are not saving the State of Israel, they are saving Netanyahu,” he continued.