Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu evaded responsibility over the revelation on Wednesday that trucks carrying medicine and other supplies into Gaza, as part of a deal to get medicine to Israel's hostages, had not been examined first by Israeli security forces.
Channel 13 reported an Israeli official as saying that the trucks indeed did not go through "meticulous" examination, confirming a claim made by a senior Hamas official, Musa Abu Marzouk, on his X account.
"The prime minister ordered the passing of medicine to the hostages but was not involved in the arrangement of their examination, which is set by the IDF and security forces," the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.
Opponents of Netanyahu immediately criticized him.
Gantz blasts Netanyahu: Decisions rests on us
"Inserting the medicine to our hostages is a significant and important move that we worked hard to achieve," Minister-without-portfolio and war cabinet member MK Benny Gantz countered. "The responsibility for the decision, as well as its realization, is on the political echelon – and only on it," Gantz said.
Yisrael Beytenu chairman MK Avigdor Liberman wrote on X, "Bibi (Netanyahu), enough with the bullshit. "It is time to start taking responsibility instead of passing it on everywhere, and stop making decisions only based on political considerations."
National Security Minister MK Itamar Ben-Gvir soon joined in the criticism.
"Mr. Prime Minister, stop being dragged after Gantz and stop the wisecracking. Perhaps the technical examination procedure is the responsibility of the IDF and the security forces, but the responsibility for ensuring that the trucks that are supposed to carry medicine to the hostages do not include ammunition and equipment for Hamas - is yours, and the small (war) cabinets' responsibility," Ben-Gvir wrote.
"If the trucks have not yet entered, simply direct the IDF and security forces not to allow them to enter without an inspection. This is definitely your responsibility and authority. Medicine for hostages – of course. Oxygen for Hamas for the continuation of the war – insanity," the national security minister concluded.
Following criticism leveled at Netanyahu, the Prime Minister's Office said Netanyahu issued a directive for the inspection of the medicine entering the Gaza Strip.
'Israeli army must be prevented from inspecting the drug shipments'
In his post on X, Marzouk wrote that "the Red Cross submitted a request to provide medicine to Hamas prisoners of war, and there were 140 types of such medicine, so we set several conditions."
Marzouk then detailed the conditions: In exchange for each package of medicine, a thousand packages must be provided for Gazans; The medicine must be provided by a trusted country; The Red Cross will distribute the medicines in four hospitals covering all areas in the Gaza Strip, including medicine for the hostages; Food and aid for the Gaza Strip must be increased; and the Israeli army must be prevented from inspecting the drug shipments.
The prime minister's response to the revelation that the trucks had not been checked, in which he did not take responsibility, echoed a post by Netanyahu on X on October 29, in which he evaded responsibility for the October 7 Hamas attack, and instead wrote that "over and over again," the IDF and Shin Bet's estimations were that Hamas was not interested in war. The prime minister later apologized.