Photo: Amir Cohen/Reuters
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrych denied any knowledge of possible arms supplies to armed groups in the Gaza Strip, including those allegedly acting against Hamas. This was reported by the Israeli media, referring to his speech at a meeting of the Religious Zionism faction of the party.
“I was not aware of this. I am categorically against supplying weapons to enemies, regardless of which group they belong to,” Smotrych said.
He added that the strategy of “letting enemies fight enemies” has never been justified and such topics should not be discussed in public for reasons of national security.
“Weapons are a red line. Our task is to destroy Hamas,” the minister stressed.
The information explosion was caused by an interview with the leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, Avigdor Lieberman, who had previously accused the government of transferring weapons to criminal clans and militants in Gaza linked to ISIS. He stated that this was done on the initiative of the Prime Minister without the approval of the Cabinet.
“Weapons are being transferred to people who identify themselves as ISIS, and this is not approved by the government,” Liberman said.
The Prime Minister’s Office did not directly refute these statements, only noting that “Israel is using various means to eliminate Hamas in accordance with the recommendations of the security forces.” One security official called the leak “dangerous” and accused Lieberman of political populism.
