The Aug. 2 tweet by Education Minister Naftali Bennett, chair of HaBayit HaYehudi, was aimed at the soft underbelly of Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman. "Enough with the excuses and these stories that we're only talking about children. It's not true. Most of those sending these kites and burning balloons (from Gaza into Israel) are adult terrorists," Bennett lashed out. This personal attack was generated by Liberman's comments earlier that day saying, "Hamas is sending children to launch arson balloons from homes."
This is not the first time in recent weeks that Bennett has clashed with Liberman, accusing him of a lax policy on Gaza. Last month, according to leaks from meetings of the defense Cabinet, Bennett clashed with Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot on the same issue and asked him why the army doesn't just shoot the Palestinians dispatching arson kites and incendiary balloons. Liberman struck back, defending the country's top soldier and then telling the Ynet news site, "A politician who seeks to gain at the expense of the IDF chief is the most disgusting thing." Liberman understood that Bennett's swipe at Eizenkot was in fact directed at himself and had to do with power plays within the right-wing camp. Liberman engaged in the highly publicized mudslinging against Bennett with his eyes wide open.
