Israel PM Netanyahu dissolves war cabinet, two key cabinet ministers resign
Jun 17, 2024
Tel Aviv [Israel], June 17 : Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dissolved his war cabinet after its two key members resigned, which further prompted demands from far-right politicians for representation in the influential group, The Times of Israel reported citing the Prime Minister's Office.
The two members, War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, resigned from the Israeli PM's small war cabinet last week amid disagreements over the direction of the war in Gaza.
Both the cabinet ministers were former military chiefs and they have been seen as voices of moderation in the five-member body, which was formed in October after the Hamas terror group attacked Southern Israel, The New York Times reported.
The establishment of this small war cabinet was a core demand of National Unity Party chair Benny Gantz to join the coalition.
Gantz, one of the three cabinet members, quit the coalition last week, and took Gadi Eisenkot along with him, one of the three war cabinet observers.
Since the emergency unity government is no more, the war cabinet that emerged as part of that arrangement is no longer relevant, the PMO official stated, reported The Times of Israel.
Following the development, Israeli PM Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant will hold small ad hoc consultations with other relevant officials to make key decisions on the war while seeking final approval from the wider security cabinet.
Gantz's decision came at a time when the war between Israel and Hamas is in its eighth month, and the situation in West Asia remains fragile.
"Netanyahu is preventing us from advancing towards true victory. That is why we are leaving the emergency government today, with a heavy heart but with full confidence," Gantz said at a televised news conference last week.
"There should be elections that will eventually establish a government that will win the trust of the people and be able to face challenges," Gantz said, as he called for early polls in the country amid growing outrage among citizens due to the ongoing war.
"I call on Netanyahu: set an agreed election date," he added.
In response to Netanyahu's failure to present a post-war plan for the Gaza Strip, where Israel's ground offensive has claimed over 37,000 people since October 7, according to Gaza health officials, Gantz, last month threatened to resign from the emergency government, which was established last year to oversee the war in Gaza, according to Al Jazeera.
