Maariv: Smotrich is trying to appear more hardline than Ben-Gvir at the expense of the prisoners.

In an article published in the Hebrew newspaper Maariv, Israeli writer Sophie Ron Moriya accused Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of prolonging the war in Gaza and obstructing a prisoner exchange deal.

The author believes that Smotrich's positions do not stem from a deeply held ideology or political wisdom, but rather reflect an internal political struggle and a desire among hardliners to prevail in the "extremist" competition at the expense of the lives of soldiers and prisoners.

Government contradiction

The writer said that Israel woke up the day after the ceasefire with Iran was announced to the sad news that seven soldiers had been killed, in addition to four others who had been killed during the days of confrontation with Tehran.

She added that these heavy human losses stem from a confrontation with a "small organization" like the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), while Israel has not paid such a price in its confrontations with major regional powers like Iran or Hezbollah. She therefore questions the true cause of this depletion, pointing the finger directly at Smotrich.

The author considers the Israeli government's behavior to be contradictory, as understandings and a ceasefire have been reached with Iran and Hezbollah, while any similar step in Gaza is rejected, despite significant progress in negotiations regarding a prisoner exchange deal.

The extremists' lie

Moria believes this refusal comes at the behest of far-right leaders, led by Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, who have promoted the "lie of contradiction" between the prisoner exchange deal and the soldiers' sacrifices since the beginning of the war.

The author explains this "lie," claiming that releasing prisoners wastes the sacrifices of soldiers. She believes this is a dangerous lie used to justify the continuation of the war, while the truth is that the continued senseless fighting in Gaza puts more soldiers at risk without achieving a decisive military victory.

She stressed that the continuation of the fighting is plunging the army into a bloody guerrilla war, for which the responsibility lies primarily with the ministers of the extreme religious right.

The author adds that the pretext of "destroying Hamas" is nothing more than a flimsy cover to prolong the war, noting that Israel has neither destroyed Hezbollah nor the Iranian regime, yet continued fighting with them has not been presented as an "existential necessity."

She explained that Smotrich and Ben-Gvir did not threaten to withdraw when the ceasefire agreement was signed in Lebanon last November, revealing their selective positions and their use of the Gaza war to achieve domestic political gains.

In her view, the undeclared goal of the ongoing war is to obstruct a prisoner swap deal, as the prisoners can only be released through an agreement. This is something extremist parties oppose for fear of granting Hamas a "symbolic victory."

The most extreme

The author continues by saying that she disagrees with the popular narrative that Smotrich is striving to implement his colonial project in Gaza, as he is not naive and fully understands the impossibility of occupying Gaza.

The reason for his insistence on obstructing any agreement to release prisoners and his attempt to appear as harsh and strict as possible, just like Settlement Minister Orit Struck, is the rivalry between the far-right parties.

Here, she says, the puzzle can be solved, as this rivalry leads to a hardening of positions to the point of absurdity. This is what Smotrich has been doing since December 2023, when his popularity plummeted in the polls due to his support for the first prisoner exchange agreement, which Ben-Gvir opposed. Since then, he has been doing his utmost to prove that he is more extreme and uncompromising than the defense minister.

The writer argued that this battle is a losing one, but Smotrich is determined to continue it, defying all political logic, not to mention religious values and "Israeli traditions of commitment to covenants and agreements."

She concluded that even after the new agreement is signed at the request of US President Donald Trump, Smotrich will strive to divide it into several phases in the hope of returning soldiers to the ruins of Gaza.