Maj.-Gen. (res.) Noam Tibon, who recently joined the Yesh Atid party, expressed criticism of Blue and White party head Benny Gantz in an interview with 103FM on Monday.
Ahead of the next elections, Tibon has said that anyone who does not pass the electoral threshold should not run. He gave the example of his party leader's former partner, Yair Lapid. "If he does not pass the electoral threshold systematically, Benny Gantz should leave the elections and not endanger the ability to form a Zionist government."
Blue and White responded to his remarks: "Noam Tibon already has experience signing petitions calling on Gantz to resign and then arriving at meetings to ask for forgiveness and a place on the list," the statement said. "We suggest he focus on advancing toward the goal and spend less time engaging in friendly fire."
Tibon, who on the morning of October 7 drove to the border communities and rescued civilians from Hamas terrorists, explained why he chose to join an established party rather than form a new one ahead of the elections.
"It is necessary to carry out mergers and create strong parties that will form the next government. The idea is not to establish parties but to unite them and create the best possible slate," he said.
"We must strive to achieve a bloc of 62–64 seats for the Zionist parties, and this is completely possible. The idea is not to split, but to unite."
Tibon, together with Yair Lapid, at a demonstration calling for the establishment of a state commission of inquiry/ official site, Elad Gutman
The difference between the government and the army
Tibon, whose military career included, among other roles, command of the Northern Corps and the Nahal Brigade, also addressed the steps taken by DF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir, who dismissed and reprimanded senior officers following the Turgeman Committee report.
"The chief of staff says very clearly that there is responsibility; this is a value that must be sanctified. Ultimately, when looking at the punishments themselves, most of the generals have already taken responsibility and resigned from the army. The only truly significant step here is the immediate dismissal of the Gaza Division intelligence officer; this should have happened earlier," said the newest member of the Yesh Atid party.
Tibon also pointed to what he sees as a clear gap between the IDF's conduct and that of the political echelon.
"There is a big gap between how the army perceives the concept of responsibility and what the government of failure and massacre does, which is responsible for the greatest failure in our history. There will be a state commission of inquiry, no matter what kind of whitewashing committee they set up now."
He likened the government’s conduct to that of a traffic offender deciding his own punishment. "It’s like committing a traffic violation and telling the police officer that you will decide whether you were in the right or not."