National Security Minister and leader of the far-right Jewish Power party Itamar Ben-Gvir responded to harsh criticism from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party by saying he would not accept being excluded from discussions about Israel's security.
Following the decision by Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party to boycott voting in the Knesset, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party on Wednesday issued a stern warning.
The decision of the "Jewish Power" to boycott the Knesset sessions came against the backdrop of what the party called the weak Israeli response to the firing of rockets from Gaza towards Israel, and the failure to invite Ben Gvir to attend the security discussion sessions.
Threat of expulsion from the government
In a written statement, Likud said that the prime minister, defense minister, army and security forces are the ones who manage the sensitive and complex security events facing Israel.
The statement added that it is the prime minister who decides the parties involved in the discussions, "and if this is unacceptable to Minister Ben Gvir, there is no need for him to remain in the government."
Leaders of Israel's largest party, Likud, have previously made informal criticism of Ben Gvir, but this time the criticism came in an official party statement, while the Israeli newspaper Maariv described the warning as exceptional.
Earlier in the day, Knesset members from the Jewish Power party announced the establishment of a temporary one-day office in the southern Israeli town of Sderot to protest what they called a rather instrong response to rocket fire from Gaza.
On Tuesday, Netanyahu did not invite Ben Gvir to attend security consultations he held before a decision was made to launch air strikes on the Gaza Strip.
According to a written statement, Defense Minister Yoav Galant, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and other Israeli military and intelligence leaders participated in the meeting.
I won't be a décor.
Ben Gvir responded to the party's statement with press statements, sending a message to Netanyahu, saying, "You can expel me, this is not a complete right-wing government," the Israel Broadcasting Corporation reported.
Ben Gvir threatened that "if I don't start participating and influencing security meetings, I will stop attending voting sessions from now on."
"If Netanyahu wants me to continue in the government, I should be in these discussions and not decorative, we need to be influential," the national security minister added. It is my duty to be in security discussions.
On Wednesday morning, Israeli officials and analysts criticized the Israeli government for the army's overnight attacks on the Gaza Strip, describing them as not strong.
The new escalation between the resistance and the Israeli occupation came after the martyrdom of Islamic Jihad leader Khader Adnan, after he went on hunger strike in Israeli prisons since his arrest on February 5, rejecting his arrest and the charges against him, especially incitement.
For hours, Israeli warplanes launched large-scale attacks on targets in the Gaza Strip, killing one Palestinian and wounding 5 others.