Mother of Israeli hostage accuses Netanyahu of pursuing ‘cheap politics’ after Gaza assault

By Abdelraouf Arnaout and Rania Abu Shamala

JERUSALEM /ISTANBUL (AA) – The mother of an Israeli captive in Gaza accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of seeking to kill the hostages and pursuing “cheap politics” after unexpectedly renewing airstrikes on the Palestinian enclave.

Einav Zangauker, the mother of Matan, an Israeli soldier held captive in Gaza, said Netanyahu chose “cheap politics over our children, our brothers and sisters who are in captivity.”

“This is no longer about rumors or scenarios. This is a war that will bury our families if it is not stopped,” she added in a Facebook post.

The Israeli army pounded the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, killing at least 404 people, injuring hundreds, and breaking a ceasefire agreement that took effect on Jan. 19.

Images emerging from Gaza showed that the majority of the victims were civilians, including women and children, whose homes were bombed during the night.

Zangauker sharply criticized Netanyahu for violating the ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement in Gaza with Hamas.

“From the deal’s 16th day onward, he (Netanyahu) has been violating the agreement and planning to return to war," she said.

More than 48,500 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and over 112,000 others injured in a brutal Israeli military campaign in Gaza since October 2023.

In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.