Meretz call to investigate IDF action sparks outrage
Liberman: Hypocrites think Hamas protests are like Woodstock and we should give them flowers
Politicians expressed their support for the IDF on Saturday, after the international community and far Left called for an investigation of the army’s response to events on the Gaza border fence.
Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said: “I don’t understand the chorus of hypocrites calling for a commission of inquiry. They’re confused and think that Hamas organized the Woodstock Festival yesterday, and we need to give them flowers.”
“IDF soldiers pushed back the military arm of Hamas determinedly and professionally, exactly as we expected from them,” Liberman tweeted. “I totally back them. Thanks to them, we celebrated the night of the Seder safely.”
Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein also thanked IDF soldiers for allowing Israelis to celebrate Passover.
“The call by the UN Security Council and left-wing organizations for a commission of inquiry following the provocations on the fence on the eve of the holiday is no less than a prize for terrorism and Hamas,” Edelstein wrote on Twitter. “IDF, we love you!”
Yesh Atid chairman Yair Lapid said he’s “proud of IDF soldiers and commanders for their determination and professionalism. We all celebrated the Seder with our families peacefully. I suggest that Hamas don’t try us. The residents of Gaza need to protest against [Hamas leader] Ismail Haniyeh and [Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas] who are to blame for their difficult situation.”
Zionist Union chairman Avi Gabbay said he “supports and backs the commanders and soldiers of the IDF and act to defend the state’s border. The sovereign State of Israel will defend its borders from every threat. No one is allowed to cross the border unauthorized, certainly not with weapons, Molotov cocktails, tires and rocks.”
Gabbay added that the IDF “is prepared for all events on the fence and I have no doubt our soldiers did all they could to reduce the number of people harmed. Gaza is a ticking time bomb, demographically, economically and humanitarian. Hamas, who chooses terrorism again and again, is solely responsible for the difficult situation in Gaza.”
Meretz, however, called for an investigation of the IDF’s response to the events on the Gaza border, courting controversy on Saturday.
The left-wing party released a statement pointing to 16 killed “and hundreds injured, some from live fire... Testimony by unarmed demonstrators and photos in which people are shot in the back.”
Meretz chairwoman Tamar Zandberg said, “The difficult results and the filmed testimony require an independent Israeli investigation, including examining the rules of engagement and military and diplomatic preparedness for the events.”
“It is Israel’s responsibility to know what happened there, and beyond that, it is Israel’s interest to prevent a deterioration to a dangerous round of violence,” she added.
Zandberg called the current policy a “trigger-happy” one.
Several Likud MKs came out against Zandberg personally.
“I salute our brave soldiers who do not allow Hamas terrorist provocations to succeed,” Science and Technology Minister Ofir Akunis wrote on Facebook. “To the chairwoman of Meretz who calls to investigate yesterday’s events: Shame on you!”
MK Anat Berko of the Likud wondered what Zandberg wanted to investigate: “Do we need to investigate the IDF for defending us from Hamas attempts to eliminate us?... Do we need to investigate the IDF for stopping the enemy from slaughtering, murdering and killing innocent Jews?”