By Deutsche Welle
09 Jun 2024, 20:41 PM EDT
Minutes after centrist Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz announced an expected resignation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reproached him on Sunday that it is “time to join forces” and not abandon due to disagreements over the management of the war in Gaza.
“Israel is in an existential war on several fronts. Benny (Gantz), this is not the time to abandon the campaign, this is the time to join forces,” Netanyahu said on the social network X, in which he recalled that the offensive will continue until victory.
Besides, Netanyahu recalled that the doors remain open to “any Zionist party” that wants to collaborate in the defeat of the “enemies and guarantee the security” of the citizens of Israel.
In turn, shortly afterwards, both Gadi Eisenkot, minister without portfolio and observer member of the War Cabinet, and Chili Tropper, another member of the same party, National Unity, also announced their joint resignation in a letter addressed to Netanyahu.
The Minister of National Security, the settler and anti-Arab Itamar Ben Gvir, took advantage of the situation to demand a position in the War Cabinet, until now composed of members with voting rights by Gantz, Netanyahu and the Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant.
Also extremist Bezalel Smotrich, head of the Finance portfolio, criticized Gantz’s decision as the “exact” response to what the leader of Hamas in Gaza, Yahia Sinwar, or the leader of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, are looking for. .
“There is no act less majestic than resigning from a government in time of war. When threats increase in the north, when hostages continue to die in Hamas tunnels and when tens of thousands of residents are out of their homes” at the borders, Smotrich said in X.
“This is exactly what Sinwar, Nasrallah and Iran were looking for and, unfortunately, you are fulfilling their request,” he added.
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