‘Spoke on behalf of all citizens’: Smotrich commends Netanyahu’s UN speech

Coalition members, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich commended Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the UN in separate posts on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday evening.

“Congratulations to the Prime Minister for his speech at the UN,” Gallant began. He then emphasized that Netanyahu’s speech portrayed Israel’s “just cause in the face of threats posed by Iran and its proxies.”

Congratulations to the Prime Minister for his speech at the UN - he spoke of our just cause in the face of threats posed by Iran and its proxies, threats against Israel and the entire Middle East. Israel’s defense establishment and the IDF within it, will continue implementing…

— יואב גלנט - Yoav Gallant (@yoavgallant) September 27, 2024

Gallant stressed that “Israel's defense establishment and the IDF within it will continue… defeating our enemies… defending the State of Israel, and ensuring the security of our people in our homeland.”

"Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke [in the UN] on behalf of all the citizens of Israel," Smotrich’s post began. the finance minister then emphasized that Israel “will not rest… until we restore security across the country to all of Israel’s citizens. We will not stop until the hostages are returned, and we will not cease until we achieve victory over Hamas, Hezbollah, and the rest of Iran's proxies. I welcome the [the Prime Minister’s] declaration of responsibility for the distribution of humanitarian aid in Gaza, this is the most important step right now in dismantling Hamas’s rule and ending the war.”

ראש הממשלה נתניהו דיבר היום בשם אזרחי ישראל כולם.לא ננוח ולא נשקוט עד שנשיב את הביטחון לצפון לדרום ולכלל אזרחי ישראל. לא נעצור עד החזרת החטופים ולא נפסיק עד הניצחון על חמאס על חיזבאללה ועל יתר הגרורות האיראניות. אני מברך על הכרזתו של רה"מ על נטילת האחריות לחלוקת הסיוע ההומניטרי…

— בצלאל סמוטריץ' (@bezalelsm) September 27, 2024

Smotrich then wrote that Israel “aspires” for and is ready for peace with the “moderate Arab world.” However, he stressed that “we will not surrender to the antisemitic hypocrisy of the UN and its dark institutions.” Smotrich also emphasized that Israel “will never, ever again divide our land or allow the establishment of a Palestinian terror state in the heart of Israel,” explaining that it would threaten the security of Israeli civilians.

Smotrich concluded his post, stating that “Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority are supporters and financiers of terror, and they will not be part of any future peace solution."

'No victory until everyone is brought back'

On the other hand, Einav Zangauker, the mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, criticized Netanyahu's speech. Responding to Netanyahu’s claims that Hamas has been defeated in the Gaza Strip, Zangauker addressed him emphasizing, “A country where 101 of its citizens are being raped, tortured, and dying in Hamas captivity is not a victorious country. There is and will be no victory until everyone is brought back. Instead of giving speeches about blessings and curses, go to the mediators and close the deal that’s on the table, the one you keep derailing. Every day they remain in captivity is a curse for the country and a mark of shame on you for abandoning them on October 7th and leaving them behind in the tunnels."

Zangauker added: "For an entire year, Netanyahu has failed to bring the hostages home, and now he presents his new strategy; instead of working toward a deal, he demands that the residents of Gaza return them. There is no limit to the cynicism of a man who dared to speak about the destruction of Nir Oz but hasn't bothered to visit the kibbutz. The Prime Minister is committing a crime against his own people by abandoning the hostages in captivity. Despite his empty words, he has no real interest in ending the war or securing a deal. He has sacrificed them on the altar of his coalition. The State of Israel has been hijacked by a cruel, dishonest, and disconnected Prime Minister who will cross any red line for his own interests."