Bennett: ‘Clock for Iran regime change to start as soon as government in Israel changes’

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Former prime minister Naftali Bennett said on Monday that Iranian regime change will start when Israel has a new government.

“The clock for regime change in Iran will start as soon as the government in Israel is changed,” said Bennett. “The leadership is a disappointment.”

“The term of the Netanyahu government began with a civil war, continued with the massacre of October 7, and ends with a historic failure against Iran,” he added.

Bennett stated that he would “implement mandatory conscription for everyone, stop the financing of evasion, and thus bring the IDF the tens of thousands of soldiers that it so lacks.”

“When there are no soldiers, you have to conquer the same point again and again, and that way you can’t win,” added Bennett. “We can restore security to Israel.”

Bennett added that he would defend Israel against Iran by renewing the “Octopus Doctrine.”

“On the one hand, we prevent Iran from going nuclear, and on the other hand, we accelerate the collapse of the regime with political, economic, technological, and military tools,” he said.

Ben-Gvir: ‘Trump’s agreement does not bind us’

Earlier on Monday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in an X/Twitter post that Israel is not bound to US President Donald Trump’s US-Iran ceasefire agreement.

“Trump’s agreement does not bind us. Israel is not subject to the United States, and we are an independent and sovereign nation,” he said.

“We are not partners to this agreement that does not ensure our security, and it does not bind us in any way,” continued Ben-Gvir. “We must not compromise on anything less than the dismantling of Hezbollah, we must not withdraw from any territory that our fighters have captured and cleared of terror infrastructure, we must not return to a situation where thousands of terrorists sit on the fences of northern settlements, and certainly we must not remain silent for a moment in the face of fire directed at the State of Israel.”

Other Israeli officials took to X on Monday morning to state their positions, including Yair Golan, leader of The Democrats, who criticized Netanyahu for capitulating to a deal he deemed unsatisfactory.

Netanyahu “stood on the sidelines” as Israel’s “military achievements secured with the courage of our pilots and the blood of our fighters have been erased,” Golan said.

Replacing Netanyahu an ‘existential’ issue, Iran agreement a ‘strategic failure’

“Trump signs an agreement that funnels billions to the Ayatollahs’ regime, leaves the nuclear infrastructure intact, preserves the ballistic threat as is, and throws a lifeline to the murderous regime in Tehran,” he said in harsh criticism of the agreement. 

Pinning much of the blame for the agreement he sees as unsatisfactory on Netanyahu, Golan continued, saying, “Netanyahu is good for Hamas. Netanyahu is good for Iran. Netanyahu is good for Hezbollah. Netanyahu is not good for Israel.”

Golan ended his post by saying, “Replacing him is not just a political necessity – it is an existential security imperative.”

Benny Gantz, leader of the Blue and White party, said “Under no circumstances – it is forbidden to agree to restrict Israel’s freedom of action in Lebanon or to a withdrawal that endangers the residents of the north,” in his X post.

“The emerging agreement with Iran appears to be a strategic failure that will require Israel to engage in diplomatic, military, and legal struggles in the coming years, which only a broad Zionist government can lead,” he said.

‘Bond between Trump and Netanyahu’ remains strong

MK Miki Zohar, on the other hand, took the opportunity to emphasize the strength of US-Israel relations and, in particular, the relationship between Trump and Netanyahu.

“The bond between Trump and Netanyahu will only grow stronger. More surprises are expected until the elections, and many people will be eating their hats in the coming period. Trump loves Netanyahu and Israel,” he was quoted as saying by KAN.

Defense Minister Israel Katz released a statement on Monday, saying that he and Netanyahu were outlining a “policy dictating that the IDF will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza – indefinitely – in order to protect the border and Israeli communities,” calling the seizure of territory and establishment of security zones “among the greatest achievements of the IDF.”

Katz said that they will not compromise on Israel’s security, promising that all terror infrastructure will be destroyed. 

‘An abyss yawns between the empty promises of ‘total victory’ and this morning’

Former IDF chief of staff and leader of the Yashar! party, Gadi Eisenkot, lamented what he views to be a major failure of the government in his own X post, saying, “What began as the gravest failure, with historic internal and international legitimacy, is ripening into the bleak outcome of a failed government.”

“A government that operated without strategy or diplomatic or leadership courage, and over three years lost the public’s trust and that of its allies while abandoning Israel’s residents,” Eisenkot continued. 

“An abyss yawns between the empty promises of ‘total victory’ and this morning.”

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich also posted on X, saying, “The agreement with Iran is bad for Israel and for the entire free world. Period.” He also implied that Israel will have to continue to carry out the war against Iran itself in order to ensure that Iran does not achieve nuclear weapons.

He alluded to heavy pressures upon the Israeli government and on Netanyahu to comply with the ceasefire’s restrictions, while maintaining defiance of stipulations he views as detrimental to Israeli security.

Avihai Chiim contributed to this report.

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