Israeli Minister's Controversial Post Stirs Tensions Amid Rising Israel-Iran Conflict
Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel's Minister of Public Security, known for his far-right views, posted on the X platform a statement in which he described Friday's attack on Iran as "pathetic". The post, containing only one word, was immediately shared by the Iranian agency Tasnim and harshly criticized by the opposition.
20 April 2024 08:43
The post of the Israeli minister is quite short, as it consists of one word. It reads "דרדל׳ה", which has many meanings, including "pathetic", "weak", "disappointing".
Jair Lapid, an opposition politician, reacted to Ben Gvir's post, sparing no harsh words.
"Never before has a minister done such serious damage to the country's security, its image, and international status," he wrote on the X platform. Lapid stated that Ben Gvir managed to "mock and embarrass Israel from Tehran to Washington with an unforgivable, one-word post".
The opposition politician also suggested that Ben Gvir should immediately resign. "Any other Prime Minister would have sacked him this morning from the government. Even the ministers who sit next to him and are silent as sheep are not free from responsibility," Lapid wrote.
An Israeli Internet portal also quoted an anonymous comment from "circles closest to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu". According to this source, Ben Gvir's assessment is "infantile" and "not suitable for discussion".
Israel's retaliation
On Friday morning, the media reported sounds of explosions in two areas of Iran and an attack on an anti-aircraft base in Syria. However, official statements from Iranian authorities and the military did not include accusations against Israel. Instead, they doubted Israel's responsibility for the attack, which - as noted by the Times of Israel - suggests that Tehran also does not seek to escalate the conflict.
Israel-Iran conflict
The tension between Iran and Israel increased when, in October last year, the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas carried out an attack on Israel and kidnapped more than 240 people. Since then, groups supported by Iran, such as Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, the Houthis, and numerous militias stationed in Iraq and Syria, regularly attack Israeli targets.
Israel responds to these attacks, and at the beginning of this month, it shelled the Iranian consulate in Syria, killing high-ranking Iranian commanders, including two generals. In response, Iran carried out a massive rocket and drone attack on Israel, which was almost entirely intercepted. Now, a response from Israel is expected, though the international community is calling for restraint and to avoid further escalation of the conflict that could spread across the Middle East.
