The leaders of the center-left National Unity and Yesh Atid parties condemned National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for his interview with the Wall Street Journal in which he directly criticized the Biden Administration and said that America would be more supportive of Israel if Donald Trump is reelected.
National Unity party chairman Minister Benny Gantz said that "we can have disputes, even with our largest and most important ally, but they must be conducted in the relevant forums and not through irresponsible statements in the media, which harm the strategic relations of the State of Israel, the security of the state and the war effort at this time."
"The prime minister should call to order the National Security Minister, who instead of dealing with internal security issues - is causing enormous damage to Israel's foreign relations," he said.
Opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid said: "The interview that Ben-Gvir gave to the Wall Street Journal is a direct attack on Israel's international standing, a direct attack on the war effort, harmful to Israel's security and above all proves that he understands nothing about foreign policy. I would call on the Prime Minister to restrain him, but Netanyahu has no control over the extremists in his government."
In addition, Shas chairman Aryeh Deri responded to Ben-Gvir's statement by thanking President Biden for his support for Israel.
"The people of Israel will always remember how you stood up for the right of Israel in one of our most difficult hours," he wrote. "You and America are a kingdom of kindness. Even between friends and comrades, there are differences of opinion. You pay a personal and political price to help us and for that, we will thank you forever. God bless you and America."
In his interview, Ben-Gvir stated that "instead of giving us his full backing, Biden is busy with giving humanitarian aid and fuel [to Gaza], which goes to Hamas."
He added, “If Trump was in power, the U.S. conduct would be completely different.”