CHANGES DECK, ADDS STATEMENT FROM NETANYAHU
By Abdel Raouf Arnaout and Betul Yilmaz
JERUSALEM/ISTANBUL (AA) - Israel is arming “criminal gangs” in the war-torn Gaza Strip, former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Thursday.
"Israel transferred assault rifles and light weapons to criminal gangs in Gaza,” Lieberman, the leader of the right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu Party, told the public broadcaster KAN.
He said the weapons were transferred to the gangs on the orders of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"In my opinion, it did not pass Cabinet approval. The head of the (internal security agency) Shin Bet knows. I'm not sure the chief of staff knows,” he added.
“We're talking about the equivalent of ISIS (Daesh) in Gaza. No one can guarantee that these weapons will not be directed at Israel. We have no means of monitoring or tracking them,” Lieberman said.
According to KAN, Netanyahu’s office did not deny arming groups in Gaza.
“Israel is working to defeat (the Palestinian group) Hamas through various means, based on the recommendations of all the heads of the security establishment,” the office said in its response to KAN.
Shin Bet declined to comment on Lieberman’s statements.
KAN later reported that the decision to arm Palestinian militias in the Gaza Strip originated from the Shin Bet and was approved by Netanyahu.
The operation was also reportedly carried out in coordination with Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, Defense Minister Israel Katz and Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir.
The channel noted that the decision was not brought before the security cabinet but rather made within a tight circle consisting of Netanyahu, Bar, Katz and Zamir.
Opposition leader Yair Golan, the head of The Democrats party, warned that Netanyahu is "creating a new ticking time bomb in Gaza" by arming what he called "criminal militias."
Lapid also issued a sharp warning on X, saying the weapons Netanyahu provided to armed groups in Gaza could one day be used against Israeli soldiers themselves and called on the current government to resign.
Later, Netanyahu acknowledged that Israel had armed militias in the Gaza Strip.
In a video clip broadcast by KAN, he said: “On the recommendation of security agencies, we armed clans in Gaza that oppose Hamas.”
“What’s wrong with that? It’s only good. It saves the lives of Israeli soldiers,” he added.
Netanyahu noted that the move did not pass through the security cabinet but was carried out with the knowledge of Bar.
In the same video, Netanyahu responded to criticism by accusing Lieberman of leaking security information for political purposes.
In response, the Interior Ministry in Gaza said that Israel’s announcement of forming groups inside the Gaza Strip amounts to an “official admission” of its responsibility for the chaos and looting, stressing that it will not allow disorder to prevail and will confront it.
In a statement, the ministry affirmed that “this admission reflects the occupation’s failure and inability after 20 months of aggression and continuous targeting of police and security personnel.”
Israeli media earlier reported the rise of “armed criminal groups” in Gaza that attack Palestinians under Israeli army protection.
The Israeli army, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing more than 54,600 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war crimes against civilians in the enclave.