Former Israeli general criticizes Gaza occupation plan as futile, costly

A former senior Israeli general has sharply criticized his government's plan to take over Gaza, warning it would "achieve nothing" while leaving Israel with immense burdens and challenges tied to full responsibility over the region.

In an exclusive interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Matan Vilnai, former deputy chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), made the remarks by drawing on his experience as the military commander responsible for the Gaza Strip prior to the Oslo Accords, which were signed between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the 1990s.

He urged the government to prioritize rescuing hostages and adopting the Egyptian and Arab League plan to resolve the Gaza crisis.

"First of all, the most important thing is to bring back our people home, which means the hostages. The Prime Minister has to remember that they forgot them at the beginning of the war. Now we are not sure what the real considerations of the government [are]. If it's purely the security of Israel, I'm not sure about that. If it's purely the existence of the government, which means political issues, maybe this is the real story. To conquer [Gaza], you achieve nothing, you achieve nothing. I was the governor of Gaza for several years. I know exactly what is the meaning to be the government in Gaza. It's a huge amount of money. You're responsible for everything for 2,000,000 Palestinians. This population is against us. We must be ready for the future. And first of all is to solve the problem in Gaza by using this proposal of the Arab League, of the Egyptian government," he said.

Israel's Security Cabinet last Thursday approved a plan proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the military to "take control" of Gaza City and the surrounding areas, with little detail specified.

According to the Israeli media, Israel has set Oct 7, the second anniversary of the latest round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, as a deadline for civilians to leave Gaza before its ground offensive.

Former Israeli general criticizes Gaza occupation plan as futile, costly

China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao met with visiting German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul in Beijing on Monday, and called on German companies to seize opportunities and deepen cooperation with Chinese partners in traditional and emerging sectors.

Wang noted that economic and trade cooperation between China and Germany has helped both sides develop industrial integration, interconnected markets, and complementary technologies, stabilizing and deepening bilateral relations, while also promoting the healthy development of China's trade and economic relations with the European Union (EU).

"We welcome German companies to seize new opportunities, consolidate cooperation in traditional sectors including machinery, automobiles, and chemicals, and tap the potential for cooperation in emerging businesses such as clean energy, intelligent manufacturing and biopharmaceuticals," said Wang.

Wang also noted that the current trend of politicizing trade and economic issue is on the rise, and global industrial and supply chains are being severely disrupted as a result. China and Germany, as well as China and the EU, should uphold free trade and safeguard the multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core, Wang said.

Wadephul said Germany opposes protectionism and considers China its most important trading partner. He added that Germany wants to maintain and expand the positive momentum of cooperation.

"China is a driver of innovation and a major hub for high technology in many aspects. We are very keen to maintain exchanges with China both economically and scientifically," said Wadephul.

China and Germany are the world's second and third biggest economies. According to German data, China was once again Germany's largest trading partner in the first three quarters of this year.

China’s commerce minister meets with German FM, calling for deepening cooperation