Moshe Ya’alon: Israel Committing War Crimes in Gaza

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- Former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon stated that Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza, with far-right ministers openly calling for the ethnic cleansing of the population.

In an interview with 103FM radio, Ya’alon said, “What’s happening here is unprecedented. This war is on the verge of lasting longer than the War of Independence.. and the cabinet still hasn’t decided on a clear objective.”

“When people say things like, ‘We’re launching a military operation, we’ll leave nothing behind, we’ll expel the population, Gaza will be cleansed of Arabs and settled with Jews’ — those are the kinds of statements that turn Israel into a war criminal.”

“The real problem is a government that includes Smotrich and Ben-Gvir — people with a messianic worldview who have no intention of ending the war,” he continued.

His remarks came in response to the backlash faced by Israeli opposition leader Yair Golan on Tuesday, after Golan accused Israel of killing babies in Gaza “as a hobby”.

Golan said in an interview with the Kan public broadcaster that “Israel is on the way to becoming a pariah state, like South Africa was, if we don’t return to acting like a sane country.

He added that “a sane country does not fight against civilians, does not kill babies as a hobby, and does not give itself the aim of expelling populations.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed Golan, calling his comments “wild incitement” and a “blood libel,” claiming Israeli forces are the most moral army in the world. Opposition Leader Yair Lapid said that any claim that Israeli soldiers kill babies is “a gift to our enemies.” Far-right National Security Minister Ben Gvir said Golan apparently “took a page from the Hamas spokesman.

Hours after his original comments, Golan sought to defend himself from the criticism, saying the forces are fighting on behalf of a “corrupt” government.

“The meaning of my words was clear: This war is the realization of the fantasies of Ben-Gvir and Smotrich and if we allow them to put this into action, we will become a pariah state,” Golan wrote on X. “

Ya’alon defended Golan, “Golan wasn’t talking about IDF soldiers — I listened to the interview. What’s happening now is a population evacuation, officially for operational reasons, but those on the ground are seeing something else.”

“At the same time, Smotrich, Ben-Gvir, Daniella Weiss, and others are openly saying that Gaza should be emptied of Arabs and resettled with Jews.”

“This turns the soldiers into war criminals against their will. After I made that statement, I received messages from commanders who reached out to me, saying that we saved them from what would have made them war criminals.”
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Ben-Gvir proudly boasts about thwarting prisoner exchange deals. I say this with full responsibility: the ones preventing the release of hostages from the start of this conflict until now are, unfortunately, this delusional Israeli government,” he added.

“Listen to the hostages who have returned,” he explained. “The military pressure led to the deaths of hostages.. most were accidentally killed by friendly fire. That’s the reality of military pressure.”

Ya’alon noted that “Hamas was willing to negotiate a deal to release prisoners. They were already prepared to accept a swap, including now. Now, Ben Gvir is threatening Netanyahu that if there’s a ceasefire, he will dismantle the coalition.”