Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz said in a heated Saturday interview on “Meet the Press” that he does not support Benjamin Netanyahu, even as he rejected turning the election into a simple “pro or anti-Bibi” contest. Gantz said Netanyahu must leave office, but added, “that alone is not enough,” and argued that Israel needs a “broad Zionist unity government” rather than a narrow, extreme coalition. He also said of his own major decisions, “I am completely at peace with them.”
Speaking about Lebanon, Gantz said Israel must be there to prevent a direct threat to border communities and should “control the routes” and operate “smartly” inside Lebanon. He said the strategic mistake was Netanyahu’s failure to separate the Lebanon and Iran arenas, which are now linked. Gantz said Israel should fight Hezbollah hard, talk with the Lebanese government, and seek normalization or a security agreement once Hezbollah is weakened and Beirut is strengthened.
Gantz also criticized Netanyahu for breaking bipartisan support in the United States, saying Israel is losing Democrats and Republicans alike while fighting on seven fronts. He urged opposition leaders to rally behind Israel, saying Yair Lapid should go to Europe, Naftali Bennett to the United States, he to the Gulf states, and Gadi Eisenkot could join as well.
Gantz defended his role in the 2021 change government, saying he brought the coalition together and others dismantled it. He challenged critics to name one major achievement of that government, while saying it improved the quality of ministers but did not deliver on a draft law or Israel’s standing in the world. He said Eisenkot wants to “decide a side,” while he seeks to bridge between sides, and insisted he is building a broad “camp of the people” against the drift toward civil strife.
