Smotrich in the shadow of the agreement: We dismantled their form, look what Lebanon looks like

November 25, 2024   

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich addressed the reports of a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon for the first time this evening (Monday) at a conference of the Yesha Council ahead of the change of government in the US. He began by criticizing his cabinet colleagues who are rushing to respond: "I intentionally do not want to express my opinion on the agreement right now. I have criticism of quite a few of my colleagues who are unable to hold back for a single second. With all due respect, there is an event of biblical magnitude here, and it is a very complex event with many considerations and challenges." He added: "There is a moment when you have to know how to manage it, where you have to manage it, that is our role as leaders." Smotrich emphasized: "I want to say one point that hurts me - I see in recent hours, trying to ignore the achievements as if they were nothing. Guys, we have dismantled their form, I don't know what you are talking about. We paid a heavy price for it, but look left and right, all the villages in southern Lebanon have been completely destroyed. In Dahiya we are many times stronger than we were in the second Lebanon." He listed the achievements in Lebanon: "We eliminated their entire command center, 80% of the capabilities, the missiles and the weapons. We haven't finished the job. But look at what Lebanon looks like." According to him, "A national government in Israel with Trump in the White House can bring about a strategic change against our enemy, a change in the status of Judea and Samaria and the removal of the issue of the dangerous Palestinian state from the agenda." Regarding the fighting in Gaza, he said: "It is possible and necessary to occupy the Gaza Strip, we don't need to be afraid of that word, there is no other way. They told me, 'It will cost five billion,' it will cost a maximum of a few hundred million. The less we talk, the more we will get done. "It is possible to create a situation where in two years Gaza will have less than half its current population." According to a report by Moti Castel, Channel 14's political correspondent, Prime Minister Netanyahu is holding marathon talks throughout the evening with ministers, Knesset members and opinion leaders. The gist of his remarks: The ceasefire agreement is not ideal, but there is a real danger that the US will force a unilateral decision on us in the Security Council to stop the war, with on the one hand there being sanctions against us if we do not stop, and on the other hand we will have no freedom of action in the event of a violation. If that happens - we will accept both a ceasefire and no agreement. Therefore, if we can postpone the end by two months and have an American commitment to attack for every violation, it is certainly better than the alternative.