Benny Begin Speaks

To Ari Shavit:

Begin: "Gaza presents us with a military problem and that problem has a military solution. When I heard Mrs. Livni talking about bringing down the Hamas government, my feeling was that she did not grasp the full import of her words. I thought the goal of the operation should be limited: to end the firing of the missiles. Happily, that is the mission with which the government charged the Israel Defense Forces, and it too is not simple. Even though I think the abandonment of the Gaza district was a serious mistake, I do not think the status quo ante can be restored. I do not see Israel returning to Gaza for the long term.

"With his decency, Shimon Peres said three weeks ago that we made a mistake regarding Gaza. We uprooted dozens of settlements and in their place got rocket-launching bases. In contrast, the foreign minister remains recalcitrant. Just a month ago I heard her say that the 'disengagement' was not a mistake. That statement casts a heavy shadow over her judgment. To this is added her call to topple Hamas and her proposal to reply with fire to the sources of firing. What does it mean to fire back at the sources of fire? You know, the source of the fire lies within population centers. Firing back means the use of artillery fire, which will target innocent people. That must not be done here. A black flag flies over that proposal.

"What I see is a theater of the absurd. I see people who are in the government speaking as though they were not part of the government. I see them shaking off responsibility and displaying irresponsibility. Why does Livni say that she must have Haim Ramon at her side? Why does she say, 'Don't leave, Haim, stay'? After all, Ramon is urging, with total irresponsibility, that we topple and destroy and annihilate and smash and destroy. And he is doing so with the same militancy he showed when he called for leaving and withdrawing and getting out.

"I am only a geologist, not a psychologist. Nor am I a nephrologist or a cardiologist - I do not read people's inner thoughts. But I wonder whether the bellicose cries in Kadima for war to topple Hamas are not related to an attempt to atone for the grave mistake of handing territory to Hamas. I also see a connection between shaking off responsibility and irresponsibility. Because, you know, what Kadima did in the past three years was to trade in illusions. What was the trade? We will give you illusions and you will give us votes. The trade failed but the transaction succeeded politically. The illusions were shattered, but Livni refuses to admit it. And I do not know whether this nation possesses sufficient strength to pay the price of more illusions.

"An opinion about the acting prime minister's ability to deal with security issues was expressed by her colleague, the minister of defense. Ehud Barak expressed himself colorfully on the question of who could take a phone call at any time of day or night. Barak is more familiar than I am with Livni's activity and her methods of operation, and in this matter I suggest that we take his word and trust his judgment."

The whole interview is here.

Read it.