Lapid says young Israelis told him 'even babies' in Gaza should be killed

There are "no innocent people" in Gaza and Israel should "also kill two-week-old babies" in the Palestinian enclave, Israel's former prime minister Yair Lapid has recounted young Israelis telling him. "I heard all the rhetoric of: 'they all need to be killed,' 'there are no innocent people'," Lapid said in an interview on Wednesday, describing "a furious and painful meeting with a group of really young people" he had recently met. The former prime minister, who is now part of the centrist-right wing alliance of the Together party, added that he asked them, "What about babies? They said: 'babies too, because eventually they'll grow up and become terrorists'," Lapid recounted, adding that they said it applies even to two-week-old babies. Read more: Lapid says young Israelis told him 'even babies' in Gaza should be killed Israelis protest outside the defence ministry in Tel Aviv, calling for action to secure the release of captives held in Gaza, 17 May 2025 (Jack Guez/AFP)