White House: Israeli ultranationalist minister willing to sacrifice hostages in Gaza
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Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich addresses the relatives of Israelis being held hostage in Gaza during a rally in Jerusalem, Israel on Jun. 3, 2024. Photo: Saeed Qaq/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
The White House on Friday accused Israel's ultranationalist finance minister Bezalel Smotrich of being willing to sacrifice the lives of the Israeli and U.S. hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Why it matters: White House spokesperson John Kirby's unprecedented criticism of the senior Israeli official suggests the administration thinks Smotrich is trying to sabotage the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.
- The White House has been working for months to secure a deal and negotiations are about to reach a decisive point.
Driving the news: On Thursday, President Biden, the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued a joint statement calling on Israel and Hamas to take part in a final round of negotiations next week to finalize a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.
- The Israeli Prime Minister's office announced on Thursday that Israeli negotiators will attend the meeting that will take place in either Doha or Cairo on Aug. 15.
- On Friday morning, Smotrich issued a statement attacking the U.S., Egypt and Qatar and accusing them of pressuring Israel "to stop the war and agree to a surrender deal."
- Smotrich said Israel must not agree to release Palestinian prisoners as part of the deal and claimed the deal that is on the table would endanger Israel's security.
- "I call on the Prime Minister not to fall into this trap and not to agree to a shift, even the slightest, from the red lines he set just recently," Smotrich said.
What they're saying: At the top of the White House press briefing, Kirby read prepared remarks in response to Smotrich's comments and called them "absurd and outrageous."
- "Mr. Smotrich essentially suggests that the war ought to go on indefinitely without pause and with the lives of the hostages of no real concern at all. His arguments are dead wrong. They're misleading the Israeli public," Kirby said.
- Kirby said while President Biden is working to defend Israel from a possible Iranian attack for the second time in four months, it is "outrageous" of Smotrich to claim that the President is trying to force Israel into a deal that will harm its security.
- "Sometimes countries that value the lives of their citizens, as we do in the United States and as Israel does, make these kinds of trades to save innocent lives," Kirby said.
- Kirby added that Smotrich's remarks suggest he "would in fact sacrifice the lives of Israeli hostages — his own countrymen, and American hostages as well — and fly in the face of the national security interests of Israel at this critical stage of the war."
- When asked why the White House decided to go on such an attack against Smotrich now, Kirby said the question is "why did Smotrich chose to issue such an absurd and outrageous statement now?"
Between the lines: Smotrich, ultranationalist National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and their parties are critical for the stability of Netanyahu's coalition.
- The two ministers' threat to leave the coalition if the deal goes through has been one of the most significant considerations in Netanyahu's decision making regarding the hostage and ceasefire deal.
- While Kirby's comments were directed at Smotrich, it signaled a risk for a dramatic fallout between the U.S. and Israel if Netanyahu rejects the deal.
