Israel in Crisis
Israel in Crisis: The Cabinet is Dissolved but the War Continues
Prime Minister Netanyahu dissolved the war cabinet and deemed humanitarian pauses unacceptable, yet he has no plan for the following day other than to continue the war indefinitely.
The political scene in Israel appears increasingly chaotic as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the dissolution of the war cabinet, which had led military operations in the Gaza Strip for nine months.
Netanyahu stated that the war cabinet was formed as part of an agreement with centrist politician Benny Gantz and his National Unity Party. With Gantz’s resignation announced a week ago, the war cabinet no longer has a reason to exist. The Prime Minister explained that from now on, he will consult a small group of ministers, including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, for military operations.
It is unlikely that the dissolution of the war cabinet will have a significant impact on the conflict, but its political repercussions could be broader. This move by Netanyahu was considered highly offensive by the far-right allies of the ruling coalition, who had been complaining about being sidelined from key decisions for months following Gantz’s resignation.
Since the start of the Gaza War in October, daily clashes have worsened, displacing tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the blue line between Israel and Lebanon.
Is there a conflict between Netanyahu and the Israeli army?
The dissolution of the Israeli cabinet comes amid an institutional crisis between the Prime Minister and the military leaders, who yesterday announced tactical pauses in military operations in southern Gaza from 8 AM to 7 PM. These pauses, as explained by the army, were aimed at allowing food and aid to enter the Gaza Strip, which is currently in the grip of an unprecedented humanitarian disaster.
However, shortly after this announcement, Prime Minister Netanyahu criticized the decision and called it unacceptable. Israeli television networks, quoting Netanyahu, criticized the army, saying, ‘We have a country that has an army, not an army with a country.’
The Israeli army had announced that this pause was coordinated with the United Nations and international humanitarian agencies on the occasion of Eid al-Adha, one of the main holidays in the Islamic calendar.
This announcement was welcomed by many international observers who had been calling for a ceasefire for weeks, which quickly broke down in the face of resistance from Hamas and the Israeli government.
This morning, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UNRWA humanitarian agency, announced that despite the announcement of tactical pauses, hostilities continue unabated in southern Gaza and Rafah.
Netanyahu Against Everyone
On the domestic front, Prime Minister Netanyahu must also manage the growing dissatisfaction of public opinion.
This week, anti-government protesters carried out a series of planned actions aimed at paralyzing the country’s roads and highways, forcing the government to resign, and holding elections by the first anniversary of the October 7 attacks.
On June 17, thousands of Israelis marched along Tel Aviv’s coast, demanding the release of Gaza hostages, and also planned demonstrations for the coming days in Jerusalem in front of the Knesset.
Andrei Kozlov, a freed hostage who was rescued in last week’s operation in Gaza, addressed the crowd in a video speech, urging Israel to reach an agreement with Hamas for the hostages still in Gaza. ‘There is one decision, only one decision: an agreement between Israel and Hamas,’ he said.
In Tel Aviv and Caesarea, near Netanyahu’s private residence, police removed signs hung by protesters, arrested some demonstrators, and in some cases, intervened violently to disperse the crowd.
Benny Gantz himself, the former minister who left Netanyahu’s coalition last week amid controversy over the fact that the Prime Minister had no strategy for the following day in Gaza, participated in a protest at an intersection in the south of the country.
No Prospect
Gantz’s resignation, the anti-government protests, and the issue of the day after are essential points for understanding Benjamin Netanyahu’s dilemma. The Israeli Prime Minister refuses to outline a plan for the day after, as this would necessarily involve addressing the situation in the Gaza Strip.
For obvious reasons, Israel considers the Hamas government, which has controlled the Gaza Strip for 16 years, illegitimate but also does not see the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the West Bank, as a suitable replacement.
If the two Palestinian territories were governed by a single power, Israel would face more pressure to negotiate the creation of a Palestinian state.
Meron Rapoport on the 972 information portal says that as long as there is a power vacuum in Gaza, the right-wing can achieve what it wants: the war can continue, Netanyahu can extend his stay in power, and there will be no real chance to start peace negotiations, which even the Americans are now eager to restart.
However, the army seems to be weary of this vacuum, which is formed by an endless war with no real possibility of victory. The attack on Rafah has increased dissatisfaction among the ranks of the military.
And the departure of Benny Gantz from the war cabinet eliminated any moderating influence on the government and exposed him even more to religious right-wing allies.
Who dream of a war of attrition and the destruction of Palestinians.
But Rapoport notes that the risk that becomes increasingly real with continued violence without a political horizon is that the conflict will end just like the First Lebanon War: with Israel withdrawing under continuous military pressure and the establishment of enduring guerrilla forces on the Lebanon border.
After October 7, the creation of a limited war cabinet that excluded nationalist religious right-wing elements was proposed by Gantz as a necessary condition for forming a national unity government.
Between information leaks and internal polarization, the cabinet over these eight months acted more as a battlefield between Netanyahu and Gantz than a cockpit. When Gantz left the government, the need to present an image of a united government and country to the outside world disappeared.
Overall, and although it seems inconceivable, the dissolution of the war cabinet will not affect military operations in Gaza.
It is a decision that spares the Prime Minister the embarrassment of justifying the inclusion or exclusion of Ben Gvir and Smotrich in the cabinet while simultaneously testifying to how the reins always remain in Netanyahu’s hands.