Israel needs to take full control over the Gaza Strip, Knesset Member Amit Halevi, deputy chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said on Wednesday in an interview with Anat Davidov and Udi Segal on 103FM.
"There’s no such thing as partial control,” he added.
“We can’t leave a single book in schools unchecked. They teach over there in textbooks how to rape Jewish women and behead people.” He stressed that Israel could not allow any form of governance in Gaza outside its control, stating, "The only candidate that should be in charge, in my opinion, is the State of Israel. Anything else means rebuilding Hamas."
Halevi’s comments came amid efforts by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States to revive a 60-day ceasefire plan aimed at ending the ongoing conflict, following the failure of talks in Doha last month and Israel's plans to assume full control over Gaza. Halevi confirmed the details during the interview.
Halevi also emphasized that partial agreements were no longer an option, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had recently stated. “I heard the Prime Minister say in an interview yesterday that a partial deal is not on the table; it’s behind us, according to his statement, and I think in general, the talks in Doha, Cairo, and Washington only pushed the hostages further away,” Halevi remarked.
“On the other hand, military actions brought the hostages closer and brought us closer to victory. This is the key to our future here. I hope that despite the IDF chief of staff’s opposition in the cabinet to this plan, it will be implemented quickly.”
Halevi raised concerns about the Palestinian curriculum in the West Bank, noting that it lacked proper oversight. “We haven’t properly monitored the curriculum in the West Bank, and this needs to be fixed. Israel cannot afford the ideology of Israel-hatred in the schools there.”
Tensions within Israel's military leadership
Amid tensions within Israel’s military leadership, Halevi expressed his worries about the public clashes between Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and Defense Minister Israel Katz. "I’m concerned about these public clashes between the chief of staff and the defense minister, especially during wartime. There is one thing that is clear: the army must follow the orders of the political leadership, and woe to us if anyone thinks otherwise,” Halevi said.
He criticized the military’s handling of the situation, suggesting that it would be more effective for the defense minister to intervene. “We all need to mature and set personal considerations aside; we are at war,” Halevi remarked. “The army, when it wants to, gives evasive answers. It would have been better to call the chief of staff and put him in his place. When the army opposes something, it evades and drags its feet, and that’s very serious.”
Halevi further stated that if the chief of staff could not work with the defense minister, he should step down. “If the chief of staff cannot work with the defense minister, then he should hand over the keys,” Halevi said. “The chief of staff does not act on his own; the minister’s office is responsible for him. The public elected the coalition that chose the minister, and that is the public’s will.”
Lastly, Halevi criticized the attorney-general’s role in the government, calling her actions inappropriate. "What’s inappropriate is that the attorney-general travels to a government office, which is not private, but acts as if it is her private office,” Halevi concluded.