Winter named Netanyahu responsible for October 7 — Jerusalem Post
In Israel, retired Brig. Gen. Ofer Winter, head of the Amha Israel (People of Israel) party, said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bears responsibility for the events of October 7. In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, Winter said that responsibility cannot be removed from Netanyahu because he was prime minister.
According to Winter, the direct failures concerned the Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet internal security service. At the same time, in his view, the political leadership was responsible for accepting assessments and approving policy. He believes these problems had been developing for at least a decade.
The party and coalition conditions
Winter, who has not previously been a member of the Knesset, expects to bring his party into parliament and win a double-digit number of seats. In Israel, voters cast ballots for party lists, and a coalition usually must control at least 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset to form a government.
The politician said that he does not work for Netanyahu or anyone else. He refused to unite with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's Religious Zionism party and opposed Netanyahu's attempts to consolidate small parties. Winter acknowledged that a willingness to support Netanyahu could cost him some votes, but said he seeks to influence policy from within the government.
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The Amha Israel list includes people who were not previously represented in parliamentary politics. Among them is Arab Christian Yoseph Haddad, who volunteered to serve in the Israeli army and was wounded in the Golani Infantry Brigade. Winter wants Haddad to become minister of public diplomacy. The list also includes former television journalist Netali Shem Tov, whose family was forced to leave Metula, and Sigal Kraunik-Atiya, whose husband, the security coordinator of Kibbutz Be'eri, was killed during the October 7 attack.
Defense, service and Gaza
Winter is seeking the position of defense minister and promises to change Israel's military doctrine “from deterrence to decisive victory.” He said reservists should not serve for years because they need to work, raise children, develop the economy and help absorb new immigrants.
Winter named the adoption of military service legislation as a condition for joining the government. His plan provides for greater benefits for those who serve, Defense Ministry oversight of yeshivas, and the creation of units that take into account the religious needs of ultra-Orthodox service members. He also supported continued Torah study for exceptional scholars and the possibility of women serving in combat roles.
Regarding Gaza, Winter advocates what he calls the voluntary emigration of the population. According to him, his proposed military strategy included moving the population, besieging those who remain, allowing departures, separating civilians from Hamas and striking the group with full force. The Jerusalem Post noted that the interview did not clarify how voluntary departure would be combined with such pressure or what conditions would be for civilians who remain.
