MK Yaakov “Ketzaleh” Katz took Defense Minister Ehud Barak to task Thursday in an interview for the Knesset Channel. "Barak is a 'corrupt tyrant' who is deliberately provoking Jews in Judea and Samaria," he said.
"Barak's ultimate goal is to get support for the use of extreme force against Judea and Samaria Jews and to ease the task of evicting Jews from their homes, in order to protect his vision of the 'two state solution'," Ketzaleh said.
Orders to fire plastic bullets at residents of Havat Gilad this week “came straight from Barak,” he added.
“This is a defense minister who has crossed red lines. He's corrupt, and he's under pressure. He's a tyrant,” Ketzaleh proclaimed. He also voiced accusations against Minister of Public Security Yitzchak Aharonovich, who he said lied to the Knesset when he claimed that police fired only 13 plastic bullets at Havat Gilad, and that residents were not hurt. In fact, the police fired hundreds of plastic bullets, and several people were injured, Ketzaleh informed his audience.
When asked why he termed Barak “corrupt,” Ketzaleh explained that Barak's Independence party, with just five MKs, received four ministries – giving an unprecedented 80% of MKs a senior position. That fact alone indicates corruption, he said, and agreed that by using that example he was also accusing Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu of corruption.
Public Agrees: Police were Violent
A Knesset Channel poll conducted after the Havat Gilad incident seemed to show support for Ketzaleh's anger over police violence. Nearly 60% of respondents said police are “violent,” while 37% said they are “not violent.”
When asked if police treat nationalist protesters and leftist protesters equally, 37% of respondents said police are more forceful with the right wing, 20% said police use more force against leftists, and 31% said police treat all protesters equally.