Channel 10 News correspondent Raviv Drucker reported that former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon blocked the sale of three additional advanced German-made submarines to Israel.

The report states that Ya’alon learned from information leaked to him that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu planned to purchase three additional subs and two ships used against submarines in a deal valued over €1.5 billion. Ya’alon was shocked and angered when learning the facts and came to Mr. Netanyahu’s office to confront him over the matter.

Drucker adds that the former senior minister succeeded in blocking the deal for as long as he remained in office but when he left, Netanyahu notified the Germans that Israel is going ahead with the purchase as planned. The report adds that many senior military commanders fail to understand why Mr. Netanyahu has committed to the purchase of three additional advanced submarines.

Drucker explains that Ya’alon and the IDF opposed the deal because it is not included in the multi-year plan formulated by the IDF in conjunction with the Defense Ministry. Ya’alon also objected to the fact the contract with the Germans was not a general one, but one that detailed specific dates and numbers and only several arguments did he, Ya’alon, succeed in blocking the deal.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)