Liberman: Israel feeds Hamas on one hand and 'scolds' them with the other

"There is no consistent policy, no vision for the future, and no plan to cut off Hamas terror," Liberman said.

By SARA RUBENSTEIN
Updated: JANUARY 7, 2019 13:50
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman announces his departure, November 14, 2018 (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman announces his departure, November 14, 2018
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
"With one hand, the Israeli government feeds Hamas, and on the other hand, they "reprimand" them for throwing rockets," former Defense Minister and Chairman of Yisrael Beiteinu MK Avigdor Lieberman wrote on his Twitter account on Monday morning.
"There is no consistent policy, no vision for the future, and no plan to cut off Hamas terror," Liberman continued with his diatribe.  "There is no initiative, they barely react."
Liberman made his remarks on the background of an IAF strike on the Gaza Strip early Monday morning in response to a rocket fired onto Israel which was intercepted by the Iron Dome.
Late Sunday, warning sirens were heard in the city of Ashkelon and Hof Ashkelon region at approximately 3 a.m. Local residents reported hearing the sound of explosions.
The rocket was launched in response to a previous IAF strike hours before on two Hamas terror targets in the Gaza Strip, which was a response to a drone with dozen of incendiary balloons landing inside Israel on the Gaza border on Sunday morning.
The balloons were attached to a drone, which was labeled with a logo from the Gaza engineering college. The balloons sat in a field near the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip for most of the day before security personnel could raise the drone using heavy machinery. When that occurred, the device detonated, but the incident did not cause any damage or injuries.
Palestinians frequently send balloons, kites and other items laced with incendiary devices over the border fence in attempts to harm Israeli territory, since the "Great March of Return" riots along the fence began in March 2018. The devices have burned more than half the forested land in the area, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) data showed in October.
The fires have burned nearly 1,200 hectares of land near the Gaza Strip, more than half of the 2,100 hectares of forested land in the region.