ANALYSIS – It is interesting to see the fake outrage shown by many Arabs as a fringe and junior Israeli cabinet minister implausibly and stupidly suggested using a nuclear weapon to destroy Gaza. It's fake outrage because ‘death to Israel' is the most common chant in many capitals of the Middle East, especially Tehran.
The destruction of Israel is also the stated objective and only reason for Hamas' existence.
I also say ‘implausibly' because a nuclear weapon, no matter how small, detonated in the tiny Gaza Strip bordering the Jewish state (only six miles wide), would have dire consequences on Israel, ranging from direct blast effects to fallout.
It would also be rightly considered ‘genocide.'
It is not even remotely a realistic option under any circumstances. The same doesn't apply to nuking Iran, but nuking Gaza is a nonstarter no matter how you look at it.
However, when the right-wing Israeli Heritage Minister, Amichai Eliyahu, responded to a radio host's question about whether the minister might consider using “some kind of atomic bomb” on Gaza “to kill everyone,” Eliyahu, stupidly replied: “That's one option.”
Benny Gantz, a left-leaning ex-general who joined the conservative Netanyahu from the opposition in the streamlined war cabinet, said Eliyahu's remarks had been damaging “and, even worse, added to the pain of the hostages' families at home.”
To be clear, neither Eliyahu nor his party leader are in the streamlined ministerial forum running the Gaza war. They also wouldn't have any inside knowledge of Israel's nuclear forces – which it has never officially acknowledged – nor do they have any authority over their use.
Still, Prime Minister Netanyahu responded quickly.
As Newsweek reported:
In response to this exchange, Netanyahu's office called Eliyahu's comments “disconnected from reality” and claimed that Israeli forces were working to spare “non-combatants” in Gaza during the conflict, despite the growing Palestinian death toll, which has sparked worldwide calls for a ceasefire. The minister himself also claimed later that his comments about the use of nuclear weapons had been “metaphorical.”
“Eliyahu's statements are not based in reality. Israel and the IDF (military) are operating in accordance with the highest standards of international law to avoid harming innocents,” a statement from Netanyahu's office read. “We will continue to do so until our victory.”
The prime minister also said that Eliyahu would be suspended from all government meetings until further notice, The Jerusalem Post reported.
These responses were not enough for the Saudi Arabian foreign ministry, which released a statement decrying what it saw as the permeation of “extremism and brutality among members of the Israeli government.”
Meanwhile, the League of Arab States said in a statement: “The racist statements of Israeli Minister Eliyahu are revealing. Not only does he admit that they possess a nuclear weapon, but he also confirms the reality of the Israelis' abhorrent racist view towards the Palestinian people.”
A spokesperson for Hamas, which advocates for Israel's destruction, shamelessly, and without irony, said Eliyahu represented “unprecedented criminal Israeli terrorism (that) constitutes a danger to the entire region and the world.
As far as I can tell, Iran did not immediately comment on the incident, which is probably for the best.
As noted above, Eliyahu responded to the outrage in a social media post, saying: “It is clear to anyone who is sensible that the nuclear remark was metaphorical.”
But he added: “A strong and disproportionate response to terrorism is definitely required, which will clarify to the Nazis and their supporters that terrorism is not worthwhile.”
This made his point more understandable: Israel's response to a savage terrorist group that has publicly stated its goal to annihilate the Jewish nation, and just committed a horrific mass murder of 1,400 Israeli civilians, must sadly be ‘disproportionate.'
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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