Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz on Saturday criticized recent Western actions following a joint statement by several foreign ministers on Israel’s expansion of military operations against Hamas in Gaza.
(In July, after MKs Gadi Eizenkot and Matan Kahana left the National Unity Party, it reverted to its previous name, Blue and White.)
Responding on X to a British Foreign Office post, Gantz wrote:
“Actions like unilateral illusionary Palestinian recognition, weapon sanctions & critical letters of Israel are harming the prospects of securing a hostage deal. Not only do they inadvertently reward terror and harden Hamas’ position—they are prolonging the war. As an Israeli opposition leader, let me say this very clearly—instead of pressuring Israel, the west should focus on putting an end to Hamas leadership’s impunity abroad.”
Actions like unilateral illusionary Palestinian recognition, weapon sanctions & critical letters of Israel are harming the prospects of securing a hostage deal.
— בני גנץ - Benny Gantz (@gantzbe) August 9, 2025
Not only do they inadvertently reward terror and harden Hamas’ position - they are prolonging the war.
As an… https://t.co/zzllRCo7YV
Gantz’s remarks come after the foreign ministers issued a statement rejecting Israel’s intensified military operations in Gaza.
They included those of Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom, and the high representative of the European Union for foreign affairs and security policy.
“The most important message is that these actions incentivize Hamas and make reaching a hostage deal more difficult, as Hamas views them as strengthening its negotiating position,” a source familiar with the matter told JNS on Monday.
The source noted that each country considering unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state faces different leverage points, whether related to political, military or economic ties with Israel.
“They are definitely partly motivated by left-wing ideology, but the primary driver is internal political pressure from the left. Much of the calculus stems from domestic political pressures fueled by anti-Israel sentiment among the public, as well as growing Muslim immigrant populations and generations harboring anti-Israel prejudice,” continued the source.
“The prospect of a Palestinian state is not only unrealistic but also counterproductive to the possibility of peace in the region,” added the source.
The Israeli Security Cabinet decided by a “decisive majority” to approve Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to defeat Hamas, including controlling Gaza City, the premier’s office said shortly before 5 a.m. on Friday.
“A decisive majority of Security Cabinet ministers believed that the alternative plan that had been submitted to the Security Cabinet would neither achieve the defeat of Hamas nor the return of the hostages,” according to Netanyahu’s office.
The Israel Defense Forces will prepare for “taking control of Gaza City, while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside the combat zones,” the Prime Minister’s Office said.
