Israel's top businessman pushes for Netanyahu's exit

Amon Shaswa, the head of the technology company Mobileye and one of Israel's leading businessmen, made a compelling call on Sunday for the immediate removal of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the replacement of his government.

In a passionate statement, Shaswa expressed his concerns regarding what he termed "failures, discrepancies, and incompetence" exhibited by the Netanyahu administration in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas raid on southern Israeli towns.

"We must minimize our losses swiftly. The only solution to the current situation in Israel is to replace the government, and this action must be taken without delay," Shaswa emphasized in an opinion piece published in the financial daily Calcalist.

Highlighting his proposal, he stated, "The current government, seemingly more concerned with its own political survival than the well-being of the nation, can be replaced without resorting to new elections. This approach would minimize political turmoil, achieved by forming a new coalition within the existing parliament."

Prime Minister Netanyahu found himself embroiled in controversy on Sunday as he directed criticism toward the heads of Israel's intelligence agencies. He asserted that he had never received any prior warnings about the impending Hamas attack. However, shortly after making these remarks, Netanyahu retracted his statements and offered an apology.

Netanyahu has yet to accept responsibility for the alleged operational failures, emphasizing that the time to investigate such matters will come after the ongoing conflict. Israeli officials have assured that an inquiry will be conducted into the events leading up to the Hamas attack, though they underscored that the current priority remains the resolution of the ongoing conflict.

Amon Shaswa, known for co-founding Mobileye in 1999, played a significant role in the company's growth. Mobileye was eventually acquired by Intel in 2017 for a staggering $15.3 billion and recently went public again last year. In addition to his involvement with Mobileye, Shaswa also founded the digital bank One Zero and the artificial intelligence company AI21 Labs, further solidifying his reputation as a prominent figure in Israel's business landscape.

This call for government change by Amon Shaswa has already stirred discussions across Israel's political spectrum, and it remains to be seen how this will impact the country's leadership and its approach to the ongoing challenges it faces.

[With information sourced from Reuters]