The Biden administration unleashed a torrent of criticism against Israel’s polarizing finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, on Friday after he referred to cease-fire negotiations with Hamas as a “dangerous trap.”
White House national security communications adviser John Kirby said a lengthy statement posted by Smotrich to the social platform X made “ridiculous charges” regarding his opposition to a cease-fire deal to end the fighting in Gaza.
“Some critics, like Mr. Smotrich, for example, have claimed that the hostage deal is a surrender to Hamas or that hostages should not be exchanged for prisoners. Mr. Smotrich essentially suggests that the war ought to go on indefinitely without pause and with the lives of the hostages of no real concern at all,” Kirby said.
“His arguments are dead wrong; they’re misleading the Israeli public.”
It’s rare for the White House to issue such direct criticism against a senior government official of an ally government — even as the the Biden administration has previously pointed out dangerous rhetoric and actions undertaken by Smotrich and the violent, far-right segment of Israeli society he inspires.
When asked by a reporter what made the White House decide to put out such a forceful statement against an Israeli senior official, Kirby questioned Smotrich’s motivation.
