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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dissolved the conflict cupboard he arrange within the wake of Hamas’s October 7 assault following the resignation of two of its 5 members.
The physique, headed by Netanyahu, has overseen Israel’s conflict in Gaza for the previous eight months. Nonetheless, its dissolution had been anticipated for the reason that resignations final week of Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, two centrist politicians who joined Netanyahu’s coalition at the beginning of the conflict.
Following their departures, nationwide safety minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and finance minister Bezalel Smotrich — ultranationalists whose positions have incessantly drawn fierce criticism from Israel’s allies, together with the US — had demanded to be admitted to the conflict cupboard.
However in line with Israeli officers, Netanyahu will as an alternative now maintain conferences in smaller boards to debate delicate issues. The broader safety cupboard, which incorporates Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, may even proceed to take care of issues referring to the conflict, officers mentioned.
Gantz and Eisenkot demanded the institution of the conflict cupboard, which additionally included defence minister Yoav Gallant and strategic affairs minister Ron Dermer, as a situation of becoming a member of Netanyahu’s emergency authorities final 12 months.
The association was designed to sideline Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, who’ve repeatedly demanded a extra aggressive strategy to the conflict in Gaza in addition to the re-establishment of Israeli settlements within the Palestinian enclave.
They’ve additionally opposed concessions that will have allowed a deal to free the Israeli hostages nonetheless held by Hamas in Gaza.
Whereas the entry of Gantz — a longtime rival of Netanyahu — into the conflict cupboard briefly introduced a veneer of unity to Israeli politics, in latest months, he and Eisenkot have turn out to be more and more important of Netanyahu’s conduct of the conflict.
Gantz has accused the Israeli prime minister, who depends upon Ben-Gvir’s and Smotrich’s events for his majority in parliament, of permitting choices referring to the conflict to be affected by slender political calculations.
The tensions got here to a head earlier this month when Gantz pulled his Nationwide Unity alliance out of the emergency authorities and resigned from the conflict cupboard after Netanyahu ignored his calls for for a collection of coverage shifts, together with drawing up a plan for the aftermath of the conflict.
Eisenkot mentioned he and Gantz left the federal government after the conflict cupboard was “infiltrated” by “ulterior motives and political concerns”, and described Ben-Gvir as “the alternate prime minister”.
Netanyahu’s workplace on Saturday accused the pair of mendacity, insisting the prime minister made choices based mostly solely on Israel’s nationwide safety wants.
