'We wanted to see Hamas defeated and begging for its life; instead we see Israel running to the negotiating table'
Tamir Idan, who heads the Sdot Negev Regional Council, said that “if the reports in the mdeia are right, and the agreement for a ceasefire is for one month only, in which Hamas's demands for constructing ports will be discussed, then this is a surrender to terror.”
He also refused to accept Israel's lack of response to a last minute attack by Hamas that killed two men in Kibbutz Nirim Tuesday.
"Israel's tacit acceptance that it is alright [for Hamas] to fire without limits, and without a response, before the ceasefire goes into force, is a very grave matter. We demand that the Israeli government and the IDF stand behind their commitment to respond in a meaningful way to any fire.”
Itamar Shimoni, Mayor of Ashkelon, said that any conmpromise with Hamas is a surrender to terror. “The residents of Israel and the south wanted to see a decision in this campaign, but this will apparently not happen,” he stated.
"We wanted to see Hamas defeated and begging for its life; instead we see Israel running to the negotiating table at every opportunity,” he added. “We did not lose 64 fighters and five civilians, including a four-year-old boy, for this 'achievement'. We did not sit in the shelters and protected spaces for almost two months for this 'achievement'. We did not take a harsh economic blow, in which businesses collapsed, for this 'achievement'. We expected a lot more than this.”
"Hamas raised demands through violence, and it seems they can expect to get what they wanted. The conclusion is that the path of terror pays off, and therefore the next round of fighting is just a matter of time. As far as I am concerned, a ceasefire agreement in this reality means starting to prepare the systems in Ashkelon for the next round, and it will be more grave and lethal than anything we have known up to now.”
The head of the Eshkol Council, Haim Yelin, said that he will not ask the residents of his region to return to their homes. “In Jerusalem there appears to be a ceasefire. I don't know what they are talking about,” he told Channel 10 news. “In Jerusalem they feel safe, and in some neighborhoods of Gaza they feel safe, but not us. We went into a war of attrition in which we paid with the lives of families and deep pain of the wounded. The government was unprepared for this war.”The national politicians are also irate over this 'cease fire.' Half the cabinet was opposed.
Just as half of the cabinet ministers were opposed to the cease-fire, many in the coalition expressed similar opinions.What's worse, afraid he would lose, Netanyahu pulled an Ariel Sharon and circumvented a cabinet vote.
Construction and Housing Minister Uri Ariel (Bayit Yehudi) said “any agreement that doesn’t include eliminating the rocket threat on residents of Israel and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip is less than half of what is necessary.
“In this reality, the defense establishment will have no choice but to prepare for the next round, which will be soon,” Ariel added.
According to MK Danny Danon (Likud), in the Middle East, restraint is seen as weakness.
“Despite the heavy price Hamas paid, we did not defeat Hamas,” he said. “Fifty days of fighting, 64 soldiers killed, five civilians killed, 82,000 reservists called up, and in the end we’re back to the agreement from Operation Pillar of Defense.”
Danon said a defeat was necessary to broadcast to the whole Middle East, including Hezbollah, Islamic State and Iran, that “they should not mess with the people of Israel.”
“I am concerned we did not succeed enough. Now is the time for national introspection. The policy of restraint and hesitation hurt Israel’s deterrence,” he added.
MK Eli Yishai (Shas) said that a cease-fire without Gaza being demilitarized means Israel may as well pencil in the next round of fighting in its calendar.
“This will be time for Hamas to resupply itself with weaponry to use against Israel,” he said. “Not demilitarizing Gaza will bring Israel to another round of fighting that will be even worse.”
On the Left, lawmakers called for the government to take initiative and launch diplomatic negotiations.
Government ministers Naftali Bennett, Avigdor Lieberman, Yitzhak Aharonovich and Gilad Erdan, who were against the deal, complained that they had merely been informed of the details of the agreement and were not given the opportunity to vote on it.
Economy Minister Bennett demanded that a vote be held on Wednesday but was informed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had received a legal opinion that a vote was not required.
A senior official in Jerusalem said on Tuesday night that Israel had informed Egypt that it accepted the proposal for a cease-fire without time limitation. The response was given only after all the ministers in the cabinet had been updated, the source said.
According to the official, the agreement does not meet Hamas' demands for a sea port, an airport, the release of prisoners and a solution to the issue of funding salaries for Gaza officials.
Each of the sides will raise its demands during the negotiations following the cease-fire; Israel will demand the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip.
Humanitarian aid, including equipment and materials to repair the damage in the Strip, will be allowed to enter Gaza through the crossings controlled by Israel. Entrance of the materials will be controlled. It is also possibly that the Gaza fishing zone will be extended.
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni responded earlier to reports of the imminent cease-fire in Gaza and says that the end of the operation should not include "any significant political achievements for Hamas, which is a terrorist organization which doesn't accept our existence here."I'll have more on this later, but let's put it this way: It takes three months to hold elections in Israel. I predict we will have them and we will have a new Prime Minister within six months. Write it down.
Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, cease fire, Erez crossing, Gaza, Gaza envelope, Hamas, humanitarian aid, IDF, Kerem Shalom crossing point, Operation Protective Edge
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 8:57 AM
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