Benny Gantz, a key member of Israel’s war cabinet, quit the government on Sunday over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the Gaza war.
The resignation was a blow to the show of unity that Netanyahu was able to rally at the start of the conflict and exposed divisions in Israel’s leadership over the future of the war and its aftermath.
Mr. Gantz, a centrist who last month threatened to resign if Netanyahu did not express his concerns about how the war will end and how it will continue, said his party would leave the emergency government “with a heavy heart but with full hearts.” He said Netanyahu’s leadership “is preventing us from moving toward real victory.”
This move is unlikely to force Prime Minister Netanyahu to leave office. The prime minister’s government will still have a slim majority in Israel’s parliament. Mr. Gantz’s departure comes as frustration grows over his failure to decisively defeat Hamas or bring home all the hostages held in Gaza following the October 7 terrorist attack on southern Israel. Netanyahu has also faced international criticism as destruction and civilian casualties rise in the Gaza Strip.
Last month, Gantz set Saturday to demand answers from Netanyahu on a number of issues, including plans to repatriate hostages held in Gaza. He was scheduled to give a press conference on Saturday, but postponed his comments after Israeli authorities announced the rescue of four hostages.
In a televised address on Sunday evening, Prime Minister Gantz outlined his views on ‘real victory’, which he said included prioritizing the return of hostages over political survival. This is a clear jab at the Prime Minister. He also said he would use a combination of “military success” and diplomatic initiatives to topple Hamas and replace it with an alternative government.
One of the most striking differences between Mr. Gantz and Mr. Netanyahu concerns their plans for governing the Gaza Strip. Critics say Netanyahu has failed to clearly outline a coherent plan for how Gaza will be run after the war ends, or by whom. Mr. Gantz, with the support of Americans, Europeans, Arabs, and Palestinians, called for the establishment of an administrative body to oversee civil affairs.
On Sunday, Gantz praised Defense Minister Joav Gallant, who has sometimes pushed back against Netanyahu’s allies, and urged him to “not only say the right thing, but also do the right thing.” that’s right.” Although his meaning was not immediately clear.
Prime Minister Netanyahu responded to Prime Minister Gantz’s remarks by urging him to remain in the government.
“Israel is waging an existential war on multiple fronts. Benny, now is not the time to give up on the campaign. Now is the time to unite forces,” he wrote in X. “My doors will be open to any Zionist party willing to take on the stretcher and help bring victory over our enemies. “We will guarantee the safety of our citizens.”
Now that he has stepped down from the war cabinet, Mr. Gantz’s ability to influence the war will be limited. But it allows him to cast himself as a stand-up to Mr. Netanyahu ahead of future elections. But critics said Mr. Gantz should have taken this step months ago.
After the Hamas-led attacks last October, Mr. Gantz’s party joined an emergency government seen as a show of unity in the crisis. He and his party member Gadi Eisenkot joined the powerful War Cabinet, a small body that made important decisions about the conflict. (Mr. Eisenkot, who was a member of the non-voting war cabinet, also resigned on Sunday.) Mr. Gantz’s experience as a former military chief and former defense minister and his status as a popular opposition figure seen as a potential future prime minister – give the cabinet credibility. I raised it.
However, as the war dragged on, the rift between Prime Minister Netanyahu and Prime Minister Gantz became more visible. Gantz demanded that the war cabinet approve a plan to bring hostages home, address the issue of future governance of the Gaza Strip, return Israeli refugees to their homeland and advance normalization with Saudi Arabia.
He said at a televised press conference on May 18, “If we choose the path of fanaticism that will drag the country into the abyss, we will have to leave the government.”
Mr. Gantz’s delay in speaking after Saturday’s rescue seemed to have left Mr. Netanyahu hopeful that Mr. Gantz would remain a member of the emergency government. The return of the four hostages provided a moment of celebration for the Israelis, but only highlighted the challenge of rescuing about 120 more through military action alone.
Mr. Netanyahu rejected the Biden administration’s view that the Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, should help run Gaza in some form. Mr. Gantz also holds this position. And he has not publicly accepted the cease-fire proposal endorsed by Mr. Biden, which Israeli officials have said is generally consistent with what the war cabinet has approved. (Hamas has also not officially responded to this proposal.)
But Mr. Gantz has been one of the most prominent voices pushing for negotiations for the release of hostages and a ceasefire. His moderate stance helped increase the government’s international credibility. Without his party, the prime minister’s government would be made up of his right-wing Likud party, three far-right parties and two ultra-Orthodox parties.
Analysts say Gantz’s resignation could be a sign of support for Netanyahu’s coalition, led by Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who have threatened to topple the government if the prime minister goes ahead with his latest ceasefire proposal. He said it could embolden far-right ministers. . After Gantz’s announcement, National Security Minister Ben Gvir said on social media that he had written a letter to Netanyahu asking him to join the war cabinet.
Natan Sachs, director of the Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution, called Gantz’s decision a “dangerous move” that would eliminate moderate voices in Netanyahu’s government.
“It strengthens the power of the extreme right. The possibility of a deal to free hostages within the war cabinet could be undermined, he said. “Now there are two important voices supporting the agreement.”
Aaron Boxer and jonathan lace contributed to the report.
