Netanyahu Told Abe Foxman: Ben-Gvir, Smotrich Appointments Were ‘Mistake’ And ‘I’ll Fix It’

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — In July 2023, a half year after his new government was established, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told one of the senior leaders of the Jewish community in the United States that appointing Itamar Ben Gvir as Minister of National Security and Bezalel Smotrich as Minister of Finance had been a “mistake.” Netanyahu even added that “I will fix it,” according to the Jewish-American site Between the Lines. Since then, Netanyahu has consistently defended the inclusion of both ministers in his coalition.

The conversation took place in July 2023 at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem between Netanyahu and Abraham Foxman, former national director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), who led the organization from 1987 to 2015. The remarks were revealed in recent weeks with the publication of the book A Shattered World: Jews and Israel After October 7, a collection of essays published by Purdue University Press that examines the impact of the war on the future of the Jewish people.

The book includes a transcript of a question-and-answer interview with Foxman, conducted last spring by Professor Gilbert Kahn of Kean University, one of the book’s editors, together with Holocaust scholar Michael Berenbaum.

Foxman, long regarded as one of Israel’s most prominent defenders in the Jewish-American arena, described the meeting. According to him, Netanyahu initiated a meeting that lasted about an hour and a half and asked him to “speak honestly.”

“I asked him why he had to give Smotrich and Ben Gvir the portfolios he gave them,” Foxman said. “I told him he could have made do with other positions.”

“He answered me: ‘I made a mistake. That’s it. I will fix it. You’ll see.’”

Foxman added that he told Netanyahu: “Bibi, I’ve known you for many years. You are not a racist. Now you are, because you’re embracing two racists in your government. You’re not challenging them, you’re not criticizing them.”

According to Foxman, Netanyahu’s response was brief: “Abe, I will fix it. The argument is over. I made a mistake.” Foxman replied just as briefly: “I’m waiting.”

In a phone interview conducted last week, Foxman confirmed the accuracy of the transcript and added that Ron Dermer, former Israeli ambassador to the United States and one of Netanyahu’s closest associates, was present for part of the conversation. No response was provided by the Prime Minister’s Office or by Dermer.