A tense exchange erupted between Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir during a high-level security discussion on the ongoing fighting in the Gaza Strip.
Chief of Staff Zamir reportedly stated that conquering the entire Gaza Strip would take several years, advocating instead for continued focused operations and targeted raids.
In response, Minister Smotrich sharply criticised Zamir’s position, saying: “I miss the previous Chief of Staff, Herzi Halevi. You should apologize to him, because you criticised him for similar statements.”
During Halevi’s tenure, Smotrich had been a vocal critic, even calling for his dismissal. In one Cabinet meeting about a year ago, a heated confrontation took place between Smotrich, then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Chief of Staff Halevi.
At the time, Smotrich told Halevi: “You don’t want me to say who was asleep on October 6.” Halevi stood up and shouted, “Take it back,” while Gallant intervened, declaring: “I won’t allow ministers to attack the IDF – this has never happened in the state’s history.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stepped in to de-escalate the tension, saying: “Both the Chief of Staff’s statement from two weeks ago and Smotrich’s statement tonight are unacceptable.”
Following Tuesday’s report, Minister Smotrich issued a statement: “Biased and partial leaks from the Cabinet are a grave illness that harms Israel’s security. In response to an undignified attack by the Chief of Staff on one of the ministers, the Finance Minister did indeed criticise the dismissive tone directed at the political echelon.”
He continued: “The Chief of Staff’s offensive, outrageous, and inappropriate remarks in the previous Cabinet discussion were not only untrue but had no place in the relationship between the military and the elected leadership of a democratic state.”
“Instead of taking responsibility and apologizing, the Chief of Staff doubled down, which led to a harsh exchange. Minister Smotrich stands by his criticism of both the remarks and the ongoing controversial appointments made by the Chief of Staff while disregarding the concerns of multiple ministers. However, he did apologize for the tone, which may have personally offended the Chief of Staff, as that was certainly not the intention.”