Netanyahu is heading towards dissolving the war cabinet after Gantz threatened to withdraw
Israel’s Channel 13 news quoted sources as saying that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is heading to dissolve the war council after an ultimatum from Council Minister Benny Gantz.
Gantz has threatened to withdraw from Israel’s war government and set a deadline for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to approve a post-war plan for Gaza.
Sources told Channel 13 that if Netanyahu failed to include New Hope party leader Gideon Sa’ar in the war government, the council would be dissolved.
The sources added that Netanyahu is trying to include Sa’ar – despite the low chances of that happening – to block the attempts of right-wing ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich to join the council.
Gantz submitted a proposal to the Israeli government to form a formal commission of inquiry into what he called the October 7 disaster and the war that followed.
According to the proposal, the investigations will include all events leading up to this date, and the decision-making mechanism by the political and military leaderships during this war.
Gantz has threatened to resign from the government if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doesn’t present a post-war plan for the Gaza Strip by June 8.
The plan, according to Gantz, includes undermining Hamas rule, returning prisoners held in Gaza, and establishing an Arab-US-Palestinian administration for the Gaza Strip, under Israeli security control.
A few days ago, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said the Israeli army had failed in its mission on October 7, adding that it must be investigated and reformed to ensure that this doesn’t happen again.
Earlier, Haaretz published an investigation into Israel’s intelligence failure to anticipate the October 7 attack, concluding that contempt, denials, and the cessation of information gathering about Hamas for more than two years in the Israeli army led to the Hamas attack.
Israeli officials’ statements acknowledging their failure in Gaza are on the rise, more than seven months after the start of the war in the Strip.
Criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant is mounting for failing to achieve their declared war goals, foremost of which is the dismantling of Hamas and the release of detainees in Gaza.
It’s noteworthy that the Israeli army chief of staff Herzi Halevy claimed responsibility for the failure in the October 7 attack, while the army is investigating the reasons for the failure, and is expected to announce its results in the coming months.
