The leader of the parliamentary opposition in Israel, Yair Lapid, called for a deal with the Palestinian Hamas movement to release the hostages and end the war in the Gaza Strip, which, in his opinion, meets the state’s security and economic interests.
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“(Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu is offering us years of war, economic crisis, destruction and violence – a war that has no end date. This cannot be accepted. The State of Israel needs to end this war on its own terms, make a deal on the hostages and close the issue “Ending the war is in Israel’s security, economic and political interests,” Lapid wrote on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
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The opposition leader expressed confidence that the war will continue while the current government is in power, since it, in his words, “does not want and does not know how to achieve calm.”
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Lapid also outlined several global strategic tasks facing the State of Israel – the creation of a regional coalition with the participation of the United States and Saudi Arabia against the Iranian threat, economic recovery, and the further development of the armed forces to counter existing threats.
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The Israeli government has repeatedly stated that the war will continue until its key goals are achieved – the release of all hostages, the elimination of the military and political potential of Hamas, and the provision of guarantees that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel. Lapid has repeatedly expressed the thesis in his speeches that only the release of the hostages will be considered a victory for Israel in the Gaza Strip.
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On October 7, 2023, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. After this, fighters from the Palestinian Hamas movement entered the border areas, opened fire on military and civilians, and took more than 250 hostages. According to authorities, about 1.2 thousand people died.
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The Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Iron Swords in the Gaza Strip, which included attacks on civilian targets. Israel announced a complete blockade of the enclave: supplies of water, electricity, fuel, food and medicine were stopped. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, more than 40 thousand people were killed and over 94 thousand were injured. The Gaza Strip is effectively divided into southern and northern parts, and Israel is conducting a ground operation in Rafah, which is considered the last stronghold of Hamas.
