Likud Party MK Nissim Vaturi said that Israel still exists due to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while speaking on Army Radio on Tuesday.
In the interview, Vaturi said, "Thanks to Netanyahu, we still exist; if he had listened to Defense Minister [Yoav Gallant], we could have reached destruction."
Additionally, the MK said regarding Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount, "All religions are allowed to pray anywhere in Jerusalem - this is how we have always maintained the status quo, and the Muslims will have to accept it."
Vaturi comments on Gallant, Netanyahu relationship
In the interview, Vaturi was asked about his colleagues in the Likud who called for the dismissal of Gallant as defense minister. Vaturi said, "I think it's a worthy move. But I say, at this point in time right now, I think it's a bit of a problem."
"But yes, I think this behavior is inappropriate. What will we do? Will the Defense Minister fire the Prime Minister? No," Vaturi concluded.
Vaturi has made other controversial comments in the past, such as claiming in June that demonstrators protesting the government to accept a hostage negotiation deal with Hamas act as a 'wing' for the terrorist organization Hamas. He later apologized for these remarks, saying that his words were taken out of context.
After Likud MK Nissim Vaturi was filmed inciting protesters to storm the Sde Teiman base and shouting "Death to the terrorists," Yesh Atid MK Merav Ben Ari urged Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana to remove Vaturi from his role as Deputy Speaker of the Knesset on Monday.
Bentzi Rubin contributed to this report.