Israeli Minister Benny Gantz resigns from war cabinet, a blow for Netanyahu

CNN
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Benny Gantz, a member of Israel’s war cabinet, has resigned from Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, dealing a blow to the prime minister who was celebrating the rare rescue of hostages held in Gaza.

“Netanyahu is preventing us from moving toward a real victory (in Gaza),” Gantz said Sunday in a televised statement in which he described leaving the government as a “complex and painful” decision.

“This is why we leave the emergency government today with a heavy heart, but with all our hearts,” he said.

Gantz – seen as Netanyahu’s main political challenger – said he was resigning eight months after the October 7 Hamas attacks because “the situation in the country and in the decision-making room has changed.”

He accused Netanyahu of putting his own personal political considerations ahead of a post-war strategy for the Gaza Strip, saying “fateful strategic decisions are met with hesitation and procrastination due to political considerations,” and urged the prime minister to hold elections in Gaza. the months to come.

“I call on Netanyahu: set an agreed election date. Don’t let our people be torn apart,” Gantz said.

Gantz’s decision responds to an ultimatum he issued to the prime minister last month, calling on him to present a new war plan against Hamas by June 8.

Gantz was due to resign on Saturday, but he postponed the announcement following news that Israeli forces had rescued four hostages in an operation that Gaza officials say left more than 270 Palestinians dead .

His resignation comes as Netanyahu on Saturday called on Gantz to remain in Israel’s emergency government, saying it was time for unity, not division.

“We must remain united within ourselves in the face of the great tasks that await us. I appeal to Benny Gantz: do not leave the emergency government. Don’t give up on unity,” Netanyahu urged him on Telegram.

Gantz’s decision does not put Netanyahu’s government in immediate danger: his party was not part of the prime minister’s coalition, which retains a majority with 64 seats in the 120-member Knesset, Israel’s parliament. However, he would leave the war cabinet, set up four days after the Hamas attack on October 7, without representation from any party other than Netanyahu’s Likud.

Besides the Prime Minister, the only other remaining member of the emergency government with decision-making power is Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, also from Likud.

Gantz’s decision comes as Netanyahu faces growing calls from Israel’s Western allies and the families of hostages held in Gaza to end the war and return the captives.

Eight months after the start of the war, Israel has yet to achieve its stated goals, as most of Hamas’ top leaders remain at large and more than 100 hostages are held in the enclave.

The United States has repeatedly asked the prime minister to present a concrete post-war plan for Gaza. US President Joe Biden, who last week outlined a proposed three-part Israeli peace deal, suggested that Netanyahu would likely benefit from the prolonged conflict.

Gantz, a 64-year-old former defense minister, said last month that Netanyahu should submit a plan that should include eliminating Hamas, returning hostages from Gaza, establishing an alternative government in the enclave, the return of the displaced. Israelis from the north of the country, and a project of progress in normalization with Saudi Arabia.

Netanyahu rejected Gantz’s threat, saying his ultimatum would harm Israel.

In April, Gantz called for snap elections as early as September, before the first anniversary of the war, saying that “Israeli society must renew its contract with its leaders.”

Gantz often surpasses the prime minister in popularity, according to opinion polls. A poll published Friday by the Israeli newspaper Maariv shows support for Gantz at 42%, compared to 34% for Netanyahu.

The war cabinet, of which Gantz was a member, operates independently of the Israeli government as a whole. He is responsible for making decisions related to the fighting in Gaza.

“He (Gantz) joined the government four days after October 7 in order to balance things with the far right and avoid reckless decision-making,” Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli diplomat, wrote in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. “In his mind, he was the responsible adult in a government full of incompetent, messianic misfits. »

As the war dragged on, with displaced residents of northern Israel unable to return home and hostages remaining captive in Gaza, Gantz may have realized he would lose popularity if he remained in government, said Pinkas.

“The longer Gantz remains in government, the weaker Gantz will become,” Pinkas wrote. “The more his positions are identical to those of the Prime Minister, the more he will lose on both sides. Right-wingers will go home and centrists will look for other options.”

This is a developing story. More soon.