The Media Line: Smotrich Says Government With Abbas ‘a Thousand Times Worse’ Than October 7 Attack  

Smotrich Says Government With Abbas ‘a Thousand Times Worse’ Than October 7 Attack  

By The Media Line Staff  

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Tuesday in a radio interview on 103FM that forming a government with Mansour Abbas, head of the United Arab List, would be more serious than the October 7 attack, framing the comparison as one between failure and deliberate political action.  

“The October 7 massacre is a horrific and terrible failure, but it is a tactical failure,” Smotrich said. He added that including an Abbas in the government would be “a thousand times worse than the most terrible failure,” describing it as an intentional decision.  

Smotrich did not withdraw the remarks during the interview, which referenced 1,200 people killed and 251 taken captive. “Do you want to make a competition in disasters?” he said. “You asked me as a politician what is more severe in my view. A politician who lied, betrayed his values, and carried out a targeted strike against democracy–that is far more severe.”  

Addressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Smotrich said he continues to assign responsibility for past developments. “I have had criticism of Netanyahu for years, and I do not remove responsibility from him,” he said.  

Smotrich also outlined his position on the ongoing war, saying it should conclude with Hamas no longer present in Gaza. He expressed support for expanding Israel’s borders in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Judea and Samaria.  

Opposition figures responded with criticism. Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot accused Smotrich of using October 7 as a “tool in the shameless campaign” to diminish failures tied to the attack. “The biggest failure in our history is an indelible stain,” Eisenkot said.  

Yair Golan said Smotrich’s comments indicate that “a massacre of Israelis is better than a government that doesn’t include him.”  

In a follow-up statement, Smotrich said his remarks were “distorted,” arguing the issue was identifying the “worse political act.” He added that the massacre was “one of the most terrible we have known since the Holocaust.”