Haaretz newspaper called for the immediate dismissal of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a member of the mini-cabinet; In light of his recent statements in which he called for the comprehensive destruction of areas in the Gaza Strip.

The newspaper explained that any properly managed country should behave in this way, especially if the International Court of Justice in The Hague issued temporary measures against it obligating it to refrain from committing genocide, including measures obligating it to deal appropriately with incitement to genocide.

The newspaper stated - in its editorial - that Smotrich urged Israel to destroy its enemies, and said verbatim, “There are no half-solutions... Rafah, Deir al-Balah and Nuseirat, comprehensive destruction, and thus the memory of Amalek will be erased from under the sky. There is no place under the sky of the Lord of the Worlds for this absolute evil.” “It is easy and simple... total destruction... and there is no room for interpretation.”

If this had happened in any normal country - as the newspaper says - the Prime Minister, 5 minutes after publishing these statements, would hold a press conference, dismiss the minister in shame, and declare that this is not his way, and that people with such a view have no place in the government. 

But in Israel under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the midst of the Kahanist Spring, the far-right leader is openly calling for genocide, and no one in the government is willing to stand up and say “enough is enough, either the vile Kahanists or us.”

The newspaper reported that the request submitted by South Africa against Israel before the International Court of Justice last January was based on a large number of dangerous and inflammatory statements made by a long list of public figures.

It added that this list included the Israeli president, the prime minister, other ministers, members of the Knesset, famous singers and media figures, noting that the legal system did not punish the instigators, which indicates the intention to commit genocide.

In today's corrupt Israel, Haaretz says, a person like Smotrich does not fear anything, but even dares to threaten to leave the government if it signs an agreement to release detainees and postpone the planned operation in Rafah.

It pointed out that he does not miss an opportunity to continue incitement, and he said about the proposed deal, “I was willing to pay a political price at that time, and I am willing to pay a heavy public price this time as well to prevent this existential danger.”

The newspaper concluded by expressing its hope that “Smotrich will pay the price” for his resignation from the government as soon as possible, calling on the Attorney General to do his job and take the necessary measures against him.

Source: Haaretz