The Democrats Party chairman Yair Golan addressed the war in the Gaza Strip during an interview on Monday with Kan Reshet Bet’s This Morning program, saying: “A sane country does not kill babies for a hobby.”
“Israel is on the path to becoming a pariah state among the nations – like the South Africa of old – if it does not return to behaving like a sane country,” Golan said.
“A sane country does not wage war against civilians, does not kill babies for a hobby, and does not set goals involving the expulsion of populations.”
“These things are simply appalling,” he continued. “It cannot be that we, the Jewish people–who have suffered persecution, pogroms, and genocide throughout our history, and who have served as a moral compass for Jewish and human values–are now taking actions that are simply unconscionable.”
Golan placed direct blame on the government, stating that it is “filled with people who have nothing whatsoever to do with Judaism – Kahanist types, lacking wisdom, morality, and the ability to manage a state during an emergency. This is dangerous to our very existence. That is why it’s time to replace this government as soon as possible, so this war can also come to an end.”
Politicians condemn Golan’s statements
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed Golan’s statements, saying,” I strongly condemn Yair Golan’s outrageous incitement against our heroic soldiers and against the State of Israel.”
“The IDF is the most moral army in the world, and our soldiers are fighting a battle for our very existence.”
“Golan, who has encouraged draft refusal and in the past compared Israel to the Nazis while in uniform, has now reached a new low by claiming that Israel “kills babies for a hobby.”
“While we are waging a multi-front war and leading complex diplomatic efforts to free our hostages and defeat Hamas, Golan and his colleagues in the radical Left are echoing the vilest antisemitic blood libels against IDF soldiers and the State of Israel.”
“There is no limit to the moral decay.”
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar responded sharply, saying: “Yair Golan’s blood libel against the State of Israel and its army will not be forgiven.” He added that Golan’s comments “will undoubtedly fuel the flames of antisemitism around the world – at a time when Israel is fighting for its life against a coalition working to destroy it.”
Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman also condemned Golan’s remarks. “The IDF is the most moral army in the world, and every such false statement against it harms our soldiers and the security of the state,” he wrote.
National Unity chairman Benny Gantz also responded, saying, “I call on Yair Golan to retract and apologize to IDF fighters for his extremist and false statements. IDF soldiers do not ‘kill babies’ as a hobby. These things are not only outrageous, false, and extreme, but also endanger the freedom of our heroic fighters under international law.
“The State of Israel has waged a just war since its founding and does so according to international rules and the highest moral values. Someone like Golan, who was Deputy Chief of Staff, knows this. Come back to your senses, Yair, and apologize, it’s not too late,” he added.
Golan responded to Gantz’s statements, saying, “We’ve already tried Gantz’s method of cozying up to Netanyahu, Smotrich, and Ben-Gvir — and it failed.”
“My message was clear: this war is the embodiment of Ben-Gvir and Smotrich’s fantasies. If we allow them to carry out those fantasies, we risk becoming a pariah state.”
“It’s time we found our backbone, forged from steel. We must stand firmly by our values as a Zionist, Jewish, and democratic state. IDF soldiers are heroes; the government ministers are corrupt. The IDF upholds values, the people are decent, but the government is crooked.”
“This war must be brought to an end. We must bring the hostages home and begin rebuilding Israel.”
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said, “Our soldiers are heroes who defend our lives. The claim that they kill babies for a hobby is false and a gift to our enemies. I stand behind the IDF and its soldiers and condemn this statement.”
The Democrats MK Gilad Kariv defended Golan’s statements, saying,” No one needs to teach us what Zionism is. The security of the State of Israel depends on the strength of the IDF—and just as importantly, on its values. The Israeli government is weakening the IDF, dragging it into a futile war that endangers the lives of the hostages, and turning Israel into a pariah on the international stage.
“Yair Golan’s remarks were not aimed at IDF soldiers or their commanders, whom we respect and fully support, but at senior ministers in the Israeli government who day after day advocate for war crimes, show contempt for basic principles of human and Jewish morality, and put both the hostages and IDF soldiers at risk.
We will continue to speak the truth and warn against this destructive government, for the sake of the hostages, for the IDF soldiers, and for the future of the State of Israel and its moral and ethical character.
And one more thing—it’s time for the other opposition leaders to stop dancing like a hypnotized snake to the tune of the machine of poison, incitement, and lies.”
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