War cabinet minister Benny Gantz on Wednesday took a swipe at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the premier’s recent criticism of the media, as tensions between the leaders managing Israel’s war against Hamas further spilled into public view.
In a statement to the press, Gantz addressed reports about the potential release of further hostages kidnapped during the Hamas-led October 7 terror onslaught as part of a new agreement to halt fighting in Gaza, acknowledging that any such deal will require unpopular tradeoffs.
“I promise the families of the hostages and entire public: Just as we previously knew how to make difficult decisions, we will know how to do so again in the future if there is a real offer on the table,” Gantz said.
“It is the leaders who bear responsibility, not the [television] studios. The responsibility is solely ours,” he added.
Those comments appeared to have been aimed at Netanyahu, who has increasingly hit out at “the studios” amid signs of growing discontent over the war cabinet’s handling of the campaign against Hamas.
“There is no substitute for victory. I hear in the studios, analysts and all kinds of commentators: ‘It is impossible’ and ‘It is not necessary.’ It is possible and it is necessary, nor do we have a choice [but] total victory,” Netanyahu told a group of cadets while visiting a military base on Tuesday.
Netanyahu has also notably refused to take any responsibility for the October 7 atrocities, breaking with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and security chiefs who have said they failed in preventing the murderous rampage.
In his remarks, Gantz slammed “biased leaks” about the hostage deal negotiations, “which are tearing apart the families and the nation, and are harming the tremendous efforts invested on the issue.”
“Returning the hostages is not only a goal with precedence in the [war] timeline, but is a moral duty of the country,” he said.
Gantz, who heads the National Unity party, stressed that the pursuit of this “pressing” goal would not come in place of Israel’s other principle declared aim in the war: removing the Gaza-ruling Hamas from power.
“We will never let up from this [objective],” he declared. “The desire to bring back the hostages alive is a source of strength. It is part of what makes us a society that desires life and is prosperous, that has something to fight for.”
Gantz spoke following pushback earlier Wednesday against the reports that talks with Hamas were advancing, with unnamed diplomatic officials cited by Hebrew media saying any reports of breakthroughs in talks are “fake,” and that the gaps between the sides are actually widening.
Israel has vowed to continue fighting until Hamas is completely dismantled and its hostages are freed, following the October 7 attack in which thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israeli communities, massacring some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 253.
The government has come under increasing pressure to reach a deal for the release of the hostages and bodies of those killed still remaining in captivity, after over 100 people were freed as part of a weeklong truce in late November.
It is believed that 132 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza. The IDF has confirmed the deaths of 28 of those still held by Hamas, citing new intelligence and findings obtained by troops operating in Gaza. The bodies of 11 hostages, including three mistakenly killed by the military, have been recovered so far from the Strip.
Hamas has also been holding two Israeli civilians, Avera Mengistu and Hisham al-Sayed, who are both thought to be alive after entering the Strip of their own accord in 2014 and 2015, respectively, along with the bodies of fallen IDF soldiers Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin since 2014.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.