Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied that the Qatari financial assistance offered to Hamas over the years, facilitated by Israel, was the source of the group’s empowerment, claiming on Thursday that the smuggling of arms from Egypt into the Gaza Strip was, in fact, what turned it into a real threat to Israel.
Interviewed by Time magazine, Netanyahu said that Israel’s approval of Qatari cash infusions into the Gaza Strip was humanitarian-driven. “We wanted to make sure that Gaza has a functioning civilian administration to avoid humanitarian collapse,” said the Israeli premier, who added that the Qatari money didn’t form the basis of Hamas’ eventual threat to Israel. Rather, said Netanyahu, “The main issue was the transfer of weapons and ammunition from the Sinai into Gaza.”
The issue of smuggling tunnels running underneath the Egyptian border with Gaza has long been a source of controversy between Egypt and Israel, with Cairo denying that any such tunnels were operative in recent years. One of the conditions set by Netanyahu for reaching a deal with Hamas is for Israel to keep control over the Philadelphi Corridor, which runs along the Egyptian border with Gaza, mainly to curb any Hamas use of smuggling tunnels to recuperate more ammunition. Hamas and Egypt have both refused this demand.
Netanyahu responsible for Oct. 7 failures?
In the interview, Netanyahu said his primary mistake over the years was going along with the reluctance of his security cabinet to confront Hamas militarily with Israel’s full military force. “Oct. 7 showed that those who said that Hamas was deterred were wrong,” Netanyahu told Time. “If anything, I didn’t challenge enough the assumption that was common to all the security agencies,” he added.
Since Oct. 7, Israelis have been calling for the establishment of an official inquiry commission to investigate the policies of the government and the conduct of the military prior and during the assault by Hamas. The interview with Time was published three days after a civil society group called upon Netanyahu to testify in front of its members on the events of Oct. 7.
Established by family members of people killed by Hamas on Oct. 7 and family members of hostages held in Gaza, the “civil inquiry committee” has approached Netanyahu and the four prime ministers who served before him to testify. So far, only Yair Lapid and Ehud Olmert agreed to meet with the group and are expected to testify in front of it on Thursday.
Netanyahu has repeatedly refused to take responsibility for the military, intelligence and political failures that enabled Hamas to secretly get stronger and surprise the Israeli security agencies on Oct. 7.
On Oct. 29, Netanyahu’s office wrote on X that “at no time and no stage was a warning given to Prime Minister Netanyahu regarding war intentions of Hamas,” adding that “on the contrary, all security officials, including the head of army intelligence and the head of the Shin Bet, estimated that Hamas was deterred and interested in an arrangement.” The post was quickly deleted after its publication after causing an uproar in Israel.
In his interview with Time, Netanyahu said he apologizes to the victims of Oct. 7. “Of course, of course. I am sorry, deeply, that something like this happened. And you always look back and you say could we have done things that would have prevented it?” Still, Netanyahu did not take responsibility for the Oct. 7 failures. “I will stay in office as long as I believe I can help lead Israel to a future of security, enduring security and prosperity,” he said.
US advances deal
The publication of the interview came against the backdrop of a statement made by White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby, who said on Wednesday that it is as close as it has ever been to reaching a deal between Israel and Hamas that would see the liberation of the hostages and a cease-fire in Gaza. Asked about his plans for the day after the war in Gaza, Netanyahu said, “I’d like to see a civilian administration run by Gazans, perhaps with the support of regional partners,” adding that this would require “demilitarization by Israel, civilian administration by Gaza.”
While the United States struggles to revive talks for a deal between Israel and Hamas, suspended after the killing of Hamas’ chief, Ismail Haniyeh, the Israeli military on Thursday called on Palestinians in the Khan Younis area in the south of the Gaza Strip to evacuate to the Israeli-designated humanitarian zone near the coastline.
Also on Thursday, the Israeli military said it carried out airstrikes against Hamas command and control centers embedded within two schools in Gaza City, at the north of the Gaza Strip.
