Italian Defense Minister: ‘Israel Has Lost Its Logic and Humanity’

Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto delivered one of the harshest criticisms of Israel ever made by a senior Italian official, targeting both the Israeli government and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an interview published Monday by the Italian daily La Stampa.

Against the backdrop of the war in Gaza and rising international tensions, Crosetto accused Israel of deviating from moral values and the rule of law. “Israel has lost its logic and humanity,” he said, adding that the world “must find a way to force Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to think clearly.”

Crosetto described events in Gaza as “out of all proportion” and “pure denial of our laws and values,” stressing that this was not a standard military operation with “collateral damage” but rather a significant escalation that included “serious actions” in Judea and Samaria.

He argued that the occupation of Gaza and such operations require decisive action from the international community, not as a move against Israel itself, but as “a way to save this people from its government.”

The minister urged a distinction between governments and the nations they represent, drawing a troubling comparison between Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin, claiming their methods had become “dangerously similar.”

While warning against recognizing a Palestinian state at this stage — calling it a “political provocation” in a world already “dying of provocations” — Crosetto painted a grim picture of “a disaster waiting to happen,” predicting a slide into “an endless war.”

According to Crosetto, both Israeli hostages and Gaza residents “will be the first victims of this strategy.” He concluded with a clear demand: “The government of Israel must stop the war now with a permanent ceasefire.”