Netanyahu ridiculed after citing son’s postponed wedding as ‘personal cost’ of Iran war

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has drawn scorn and disbelief after invoking his son’s postponed wedding as an example of the “personal cost” of the unprovoked war he launched against Iran.

Standing solemnly outside the missile-damaged Soroka Medical Centre in Beersheba, Netanyahu said: “There are people who were killed, families who grieved loved ones, I really appreciate that,” adding that “each of us bears a personal cost, and my family has not been exempt.”

He continued, “It really reminds me of the British people during the blitz. We are going through a blitz.”

The Blitz, short for Blitzkrieg (German for “lightning war”), was a sustained aerial bombing campaign carried out by Nazi Germany against Britain in 1940 and 1941. Over a period of eight months, German bombers targeted London and other major cities, killing more than 43,000 civilians and leaving widespread destruction in its wake.

Read: The Global Cost of Israeli Impunity

In what appears to be an attempt to underline his family’s shared hardship with ordinary Israelis, Netanyahu stunningly compared the cancellation of his son’s wedding with the hardship faced by ordinary Israelis. “This is the second time that my son Avner has cancelled a wedding due to missile threats,” he said. “It is a personal cost for his fiancée as well, and I must say that my dear wife is a hero, and she bears a personal cost.”

Netanyahu’s remarks triggered a wave of public fury, with many accusing him of being detached from the realities faced by ordinary Israelis and Palestinians alike. Gilad Kariv, a Knesset member from the Democrats, called the comments “narcissistic beyond belief,” noting that while many Israelis are mourning the deaths of loved ones, Netanyahu chose to spotlight an inconvenience of privilege. “I know many families who were not forced to postpone a wedding, but who will now never celebrate the weddings that were once meant to take place,” he said.

Netanyahu’s remarks are seen as an example of a Israeli prime minster completely out of touch with the staggering human cost of his policies. With over 55,000 Palestinians, the majority women and children, killed in Gaza under his leadership, Netanyahu’s invocation of his son’s delayed wedding as a “personal cost” struck many as grotesquely self-centred.

Israel’s latest military assault on Iran, launched last Friday, has led to at least 24 Israeli civilian deaths, while Washington-based human rights monitors estimate that more than 260 Iranian civilians have been killed. Netanyahu’s administration has faced growing criticism both at home and abroad, not only for escalating regional warfare but also for its failure to prioritise hostage negotiations and its disregard for international law in Gaza and beyond.

Read: More than 680,000 Palestinians forced to flee again in Gaza: UN