Israel Defense Minister Blames Opposition for Future Attacks

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz escalated his rhetoric on Thursday, holding opposition leaders responsible for any future attacks or operations targeting Israel. Katz warned of potential attacks by hostile entities during or around election night, aimed at influencing the results. He stated that based on information from the Israeli security establishment, there are intentions by adversaries to attack Israel and carry out operations in the period surrounding the elections. Katz asserted that any future attack would be attributed to Yair Lapid, Naftali Bennett, Yair Golan, and their opposition colleagues due to their ongoing criticism of him and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Katz's statements came in response to Lapid's remarks in a radio interview, where Lapid claimed that, based on his information, there was no justification for an attack on Iran or elsewhere before the elections. Lapid suggested that escalation claims might be intended to inflame tensions before the vote. Lapid sharply criticized Katz's statement as "reckless and hysterical," accusing the government of attempting to shift blame for its security and political failures onto the opposition.

Party leader Gadi Eisenkot also criticized Katz's statements, viewing them as an attempt to preemptively assign blame. Yair Golan described the remarks as irresponsible and indicative of panic. However, the report noted that specific intelligence warnings about Iranian or Hezbollah intentions to attack Israel before or after the elections were not available, despite ongoing alert levels within the Israeli security establishment and exceptional army directives issued in preparation for the elections.

These developments occur amidst reports of American and Israeli preparations for a potential resumption of attacks on Iran following the US midterm elections on November 3. US President Donald Trump indicated that developments with Iran might occur "one way or another" soon, emphasizing that Washington is not currently negotiating with Tehran.