Benjamin Netanyahu Confronted With Ultimatum and Deadline

Benny Gantz, a centrist member of Israel's War Cabinet, threatened to resign from the government if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not adopt his six-point plan on how to deal with the conflict in Gaza by June 8.

The Context

On October 7, 2023, Hamas led the deadliest Palestinian militant attack on Israel in history, killing some 1,200 people and taking roughly 250 hostages. About half of the hostages were freed during a temporary ceasefire in November. On Friday, the Israeli military said they recovered the bodies of three hostages in Gaza. Before that, Israel said militants still had around 100 hostages and the remains of over 30 others. Meanwhile, over 35,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in the conflict, according to local health officials.

What We Know

Gantz's plan includes the return of hostages in Gaza, demilitarizing the region and ending Hamas' control over it, and supporting efforts to normalize Israel-Saudi Arabia relations. The plan would also set up a temporary U.S.-European-Arab-Palestinian system of civil administration for Gazans while Israel retains security control.

Gantz is also asking for the return of north Israeli residents who were evacuated from their homes and the rehabilitation of Gaza border communities. The Israeli official wants all Israeli citizens to be able to be drafted as well. Currently, ultra-Orthodox Jews are exempt from the draft.

"If you choose the path of fanatics and lead the entire nation to the abyss—we will be forced to quit the government," Gantz, a longtime political rival of Netanyahu, warned Israel if his plan does not go in motion.

Newsweek reached out to Netanyahu's office as well as the White House and U.S. National Security Council via email for comment.

Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Saturday responding to Gantz's ultimatum, "While our heroic soldiers are fighting to destroy Hamas battalions in Rafah, Gantz chooses to issue an ultimatum to the Prime Minister instead of issuing an ultimatum to Hamas."

The prime minister's office added: "The conditions set by Benny Gantz are laundered words whose meaning is clear: the end of the war and a defeat for Israel, the abandonment of most of the hostages, leaving Hamas-rule intact and the establishment of a Palestinian state. Our soldiers did not fall in vain and certainly not for the sake of replacing Hamastan with Fatahstan."

Gantz's office said in response to Netanyahu's office's statement, "Had the Prime Minister listened to Gantz, we would have entered Rafah months ago and finished the mission."

His office added: "If the emergency government is important to the prime minister, he should hold the necessary discussions, make the necessary decisions, and not drag his feet for fear of the extremists in his government."

Meanwhile, a U.S. official told Newsweek via email on Sunday: "We don't comment on domestic Israeli politics. But we've been clear on the record that Israel's military operations require a political plan to ensure the lasting defeat of Hamas."

Views

Barbara Slavin, a distinguished fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington, D.C., an international security think tank, told Newsweek via text message on Saturday that Gantz's ultimatum is "long overdue."

"This war is only causing misery to Israelis and Palestinians and poisoning chances for diplomacy," she added.

Netanyahu has been criticized over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war both at home and abroad, with protests in Israel having grown in recent months. In late March, thousands of people gathered in the streets of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to protest the Netanyahu government's failure to bring home the Israeli hostages. Protestors held banners calling for the prime minister to resign and for Israel to hold new elections, something that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat who is also Jewish, called for earlier that month.

"At this critical juncture, I believe a new election is the only way to allow for a healthy and open decision-making process about the future of Israel," Schumer said on the Senate floor in March.

Netanyahu said calls for new elections are "ridiculous" while appearing on CNN's State of the Union at the time.

The Israeli leader added: "It's like after 9/11— you're in the midst of fighting the war against Al-Qaeda and an Israeli would say, you know what we need now is either new elections in the U.S. or if your system doesn't allow then President Bush should resign, and we should have an alternative leader. You don't do that. You don't do that to a sister democracy, to an ally."

Meanwhile, pro-Palestinian protests have erupted on college campuses across the U.S., calling for universities to divest from Israel over the alleged genocide of the Palestinians. Israel denies claims that it has committed genocide or any war crimes. The college protests have also criticized the Biden administration for its support of Israel. Meanwhile, some have pointed a finger at the protestors for their disruptive behavior, which at times included vandalism.

What's Next?

Earlier this month, Hamas said it accepted a ceasefire proposal that Egypt and Qatar orchestrated. However, Netanyahu's office rejected the proposal, saying it "is far from meeting Israel's core demands." While Israel said it would send negotiators to Egypt to work on a deal, it continued its military operation in Gaza. On May 7, Israel seized control of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, despite warnings, including from President Joe Biden, not to invade Rafah, the southern Gaza city that holds some 1.4 million Palestinians.

Update 5/18/24, 3:42 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.

Update 5/18/24, 4:38 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.

Update 5/18/24, 5:24 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Slavin.

Update 5/19/24, 2:03 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from a U.S. official.