Right-wing activist: PM negotiating with Hamas for political gain new low

"If until now, Netanyahu has kowtowed to the hundreds of rockets fired at Israel, and even agreed to transfer protection money to Hamas for a mock peace, we now have reached a new low: the prime minister is haggling over the blood of Israeli citizens," Ben-Gvir said.

By SARA RUBENSTEIN, YASSIR OKBI
Updated: DECEMBER 27, 2018 12:36
Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh gestures during a rally marking the 31st anniversary of Hamas' founding, in Gaza City December 16, 2018 (photo credit: IBRAHEEM ABU MUSTAFA / REUTERS)
Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh gestures during a rally marking the 31st anniversary of Hamas' founding, in Gaza City December 16, 2018
(photo credit: IBRAHEEM ABU MUSTAFA / REUTERS)
Right-wing activist Itamar Ben-Gvir strongly criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu in the wake of media reports on Thursday that the prime minister asked the Hamas terrorist organization to avoid an escalation due to the upcoming elections, saying, "Day to day Netanyahu is cheapening the blood of Israeli citizens more and more."
"If until now, Netanyahu has kowtowed to the hundreds of rockets fired at Israel, and even agreed to transfer protection money to Hamas for a mock peace, we now have reached a new low: the prime minister is haggling over the blood of Israeli citizens," Ben-Gvir said.
Ben-Gvir also criticized Bayit Yehudi chairman Naftali Bennett.  "When Bennett refrained from overthrowing the government, he excused it by saying 'Netanyahu promised a change in security policy.'  Naftali Bennett and Bayit Yehudi are guilty of the current situation no less than the prime minister."
"Only a month ago, at the dramatic press conference convened by Netanyahu, he said that it was a sensitive period from a security standpoint, and that it wasn't the time to topple a right-wing government," Ben-Gvir added. ""Today it's clear to all that this was another spin of Netanyahu's creation."
"We must understand that the Likud and Netanyahu are implementing the policies of Tamar Zandberg and Meretz."
"A government that negotiates the blood of its citizens has no right to exist," Ben-Gvir concluded.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly requested that Egypt convey a message to the Hamas leadership in the Gaza Strip that he is interested in a long-term ceasefire through Israel's elections in April, according to the London-based Al-Arabi Al-Jadid.
Netanyahu described the coming period as a "bottleneck," and warned Hamas against an escalation in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, according to the report.  Netanyahu also conveyed to Hamas that an escalation in the Gaza Strip could lead the prime minister to embark on a military operation. Netanyahu reportedly asked the Egyptians to ease the passage of Gaza residents through the Rafah crossing so as not to provide Hamas with an excuse to escalate the situation.
The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reported on Monday that Egyptian intelligence conveyed a message to Hamas that Israel was committed to a ceasefire after last month's fighting and it had no intention of escalating the situation in the south.
The armed wing of the Palestinian factions released a statement the day before threatening to respond harshly to the "murder of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip."

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"The criminal acts against our people have crossed a red line. The resistance will not concede to the enemy and will not stand idly by in the face of these crimes," the statement said.