JERUSALEM 

The former chief of Israel's Shin Bet security service on Monday called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down immediately.

In an article published by Israeli Channel 12, Yuval Diskin said Netanyahu’s behavior since Oct. 7 "explains well why he must go home now."

Diskin said Netanyahu appeared "defeated and indifferent" in the first two weeks after Oct. 7 as he refused to acknowledge responsibility for the Hamas attack.

"We must choose in the upcoming elections a new, trustworthy and humble leadership that loves its people, not itself," Diskin said.

Netanyahu is facing growing criticism over his failure to acknowledge responsibility for the Hamas attack on Israeli border towns on Oct. 7.

A recent opinion poll by the Lazar Research Institute for Israeli daily Maariv found that only 27% of Israelis believe that Netanyahu is the right person to run the government.

The survey found that 49% of Israelis, or about half, believe that Benny Gantz, leader of the National Unity Party, is the best figure to lead the country’s government.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Friday after the end of a week-long humanitarian pause with Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 15,899 Palestinians have been killed and more than 42,000 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar