Finance Minister Ronnie Bar-On and Member of Knesset Shai Hermesh of the Kadima party criticized Defense Minister and Labor party chairman Ehud Barak on Thursday for his declaration on Wednesday that he intends to demand half a billion shekels in additional funds for the fortification of Jewish communities near Gaza against rocket attacks originating in the Hamas-controlled area.

Finance Minister Ronnie Bar-On said, “Barak should stop giving advice and start taking doing his job.” Noting the Defense Ministry budget of NIS 50 billion, Bar-On said that with that kind of money at his disposal, “I would expect him to succeed in stopping the rocket fire on Sderot.” Hermesh - who lives in the affected area - said, "Barak has been in office for two years and he thinks now is the time to be accountable for the residents of Sderot and the Gaza communities. He has made no effort to solve this crisis using the funds the Defense Ministry has."

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