National Unity chairman Benny Gantz said during a press conference in Sderot on Wednesday that Hamas was militarily defeated following the IDF‘s operation in Gaza.
„From a military point of view – Hamas is defeated. Its fighters are eliminated or in hiding. Its abilities are cut off, and we will continue to strike what remains.
However, “from a military point of view – Hamas is defeated. Its fighters are eliminated or in hiding” and its capabilities “crippled,” he continues, stating that “victory will come step by step” and that Israel “will not stop. We will enter Rafah. We will return to Khan Younis. And we will operate in Gaza. Wherever there are terrorist targets – the IDF will be there.”
(28.01.2024)
War cabinet minister Benny Gantz tells residents of the evacuated southern communities that the war against Hamas could last “a year, a decade, or even an entire generation,” and acknowledges the urgent need to ensure the release of the hostages still held in Gaza, Channel 12 reports.
Along with polling for the distribution of mandates in the Knesset, respondents were asked about leadership and who they deemed fit to lead Israel as prime minister. These results remained similar to last week‘s, with 45% of respondents supporting a Gantz premiership, while support for Netanyahu as prime minister decreased by four points, currently at 34%.
As the first major political shakeup since the war‘s outbreak and Gantz‘s subsequent entry into the emergency government, Sa‘ar‘s departure may signal broader realignments within Israeli politics. Pundits also questioned whether the move signaled Sa‘ar‘s belief that elections may take place even before the war is over.
Sa‘ar, a former minister in the Likud party, left after multiple disagreements with Prime Minister Netanyahu. His right-wing faction united with Gantz‘s center-left Blue and White party ahead of the 2022 elections under the banner of the National Unity party.
Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Gantz, a member of the Israeli war cabinet, as the US seeks to ratchet up pressure on the Netanyahu government to allow more aid into Gaza. Those calls have gone largely unheeded as the humanitarian crisis deepens and ceasefire talks have yet to reach a breakthrough.
The Biden administration‘s rift with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu became even more acute Sunday, when Vice President Kamala Harris called for a cease-fire in Gaza the day before a controversial meeting with a top Israeli official and longtime Netanyahu rival.
Israeli Cabinet minister Benny Gantz traveled to Washington without the endorsement of Netanyahu, who instructed the Israeli Embassy in the U.S. to withhold assistance in arranging his meetings, Israel Hayom reported.
An official from Netanyahu’s far-right Likud party said Gantz’s trip was planned without authorization from the Israeli leader. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Netanyahu had a “tough talk” with Gantz and told him the country has “just one prime minister.”
Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday is hosting a member of Israel’s wartime Cabinet who is visiting Washington in defiance of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Benny Gantz, a centrist political rival of Netanyahu, is sitting down with several senior Biden administration officials this week, including Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken,
„The prime minister made it clear to Gantz last night that he does not approve of his trip to Washington. Any official trip abroad by a minister that is not private but rather in an official capacity requires approval from the prime minister,“ the senior figure was quoted as saying.
A statement from Gantz confirmed that he would meet with Harris, as well as with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Republican and Democratic members of US Congress.
Israel’s war on Hamas could last an “10 years, or even entire generation,” war cabinet minister Benny Gantz reportedly told residents of evacuated communities in southern Israel.
“Complete removal of the threat will take time,” Israel’s Channel 12 reported Mr Gantz, who previously served as deputy prime minister and defence minister, as saying on Sunday.
With the government’s popularity plummeting, a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nevertheless garnered only 18 votes in the Knesset on Monday evening, falling far short of the necessary majority to pass in the 120-strong Knesset plenum.
The vote was boycotted by the coalition, whose heads stated earlier in the day that they would “not take part in political theater during wartime.”
“This terror attack is further proof of our obligation to continue to fight with strength and determination against murderous terrorism, which threatens our citizens. In Jerusalem, Gaza, in Judea and Samaria, and everywhere,” Gantz writes on X, using the biblical name for the West Bank.
(11.10.2023)
(today)
(05.10.2023)
The Biden administration hopes Israeli opposition parties will consider joining the coalition in place of its far-right members in case the latter opposes any concessions towards the Palestinians as part of a potential Saudi agreement
Plus on a personal level, it appears humiliating and degrading for anyone to be forced to „kneel“ and serve as Bibi‘s powerless slave ministers. Gantz wants to be PM, not spend what remains of his political career pouring Miss Piggy‘s pink champagne for her.
The Biden administration hopes Israeli opposition parties will consider joining the coalition in place of its far-right members in case the latter opposes any concessions towards the Palestinians as part of a potential Saudi agreement
Lapid told the Americans he was vehemently opposed to allowing Saudi Arabia to carry out any nuclear enrichment on its soil.
The report said Gantz and Bennett were believed to have also highlighted the dangers of a regional nuclear race if the Saudis had their own program.
Netanyahu has since said he will seek to build consensus before approving further changes to the judicial system, but also pledged the coalition will move forward alone if no deal is reached.
“There is no rebellion in Likud. We all want to reach agreements and need to make the maximum effort to do so, but we will not give the other side a veto,” the ruling party said in a statement.
According to the report by Ynet, Gallant intends to work toward such a coalition with the National Unity party headed by Gantz, and Yesh Atid headed by Lapid, even if it meant that he would have to resign from his ministerial post.
This potential switch would primarily be made to replace the far-right Religious Zionism headed by Bezalel Smotrich and Jewish Power headed by Itamar Ben-Gvir, in order to halt movements toward extremism, and return to a national conesus.
Such a nightmarish spectacle had never been seen in Israel: The president, the prime minister, the chairman of the opposition and the head of the country‘s largest labor federation were trading proposals on the issue of judicial review as if they were cryptocurrency.
Obviously, spies are trying to infiltrate Israel´s Democracy Movement that resists the judicial coup of Benyamin Netanyahu´s extreme right-wing government. That spies agenda seems to follow some „broad consensus“ of Mossad and CIA, demanded by US state leadership, to keep situation under control and safequard geostrategic goals.
An analysis and prognosis.
(17.06.2023)
ומי שהצביעו עבור קארין אלהרר ופנינה תמנו שטה היו גם חברי הכנסת של ש״ס, בהוראה של דרעי ואולי אף דרעי בעצמו, ובידיעת נתניהו, גנץ ולפיד.
האינטרס של לפיד וגנץ היה להראות ״הישג״ בהצבעה בכנסת, האינטרס של נתניהו היה להקפיא את ההפיכה המשטרית על מנת להגיע לוושינגטון ולמסמס את המחאה, והאינטרס של דרעי היה להמשיך את השיחות בבית הנשיא על מנת לסלול את דרכו לממשלה.
נתניהו ודרעי הבינו שללא נציגת האופוזיציה בוועדה תקום סערה ציבורית והכל יתפוצץ. לכן פעלו כפי שפעלו בתיאום מלא עם גנץ ולפיד.
ולכן גם ההודעה של גנץ ולפיד, שהם משהים את השיחות עד לבחירת נציג הקואליציה לוועדה וכינוסה, גם האמירה הזאת היא עבודה בעיניים, הכל בלוף.
זה פשוט המשך שיתוף פעולה, וחלק מאותה הסכמה של גנץ ולפיד להכשיר את דרעי ולהכניסו לממשלה.
גנץ ולפיד הרימו דגל לבן, ועשו מכירת חיסול של הציבור הליברלי במדינת ישראל.
לצערי זו האמת מאחורי השיחות בבית הנשיא וההצבעה בכנסת ביום רביעי.
(17.06.2023)
“The picture that arises is that everything that happened on Wednesday in the Knesset vote for the Judicial Appointments Committee was one big show, behind which there was a four-way deal between [National Unity Party chief Benny] Gantz and [Opposition leader Yair] Lapid on one side and Netanyahu and [Shas leader Arye] Dery on the other,” Lieberman posted on his Twitter account.
“The interest of Lapid and Gantz is to show ‘an achievement’ in the Knesset vote, Netanyahu’s interest is to freeze the [judicial overhaul] so he can go to Washington and soften the protests, and Dery’s interest is to continue the talks at the President’s Residence to pave his path back to the government,” he wrote.
(June 15, 2023)
But it may well be a Pyrrhic victory, writes @noa_landau
(Jun 12, 2023)
A compromise agreement between coalition and opposition lawmakers over the government‘s judicial overhaul is expected to be reached as early as Wednesday, opposition MK Avigdor Lieberman said on Monday.
According to the Yisrael Beitenu chairman, the agreement will come after the opposition candidate for the Judicial Appointments Committee, MK Karine Elharrar of Yesh Atid, is elected to the position.
Lapid made an appearance at the Tel Aviv protest on Saturday night. At Kaplan Street, a demonstrator yelled at him, „No negotiations!“ To which he responded, „We‘re not there.“ Although he and Gantz have agreed to delay the negotiations with the coalition, protesters are demanding that they shelve them completely.
Former Justice Minister Tzipi Livni also gave a speech at that rally, saying that the government is „already advancing fascist decisions and legislation that will change the face of Israel forever. Decisions and legislation that erase democracy, bring about religious supremacy over secular people, Jewish supremacy over Arabs and messianic supremacy over judges.“
When the negotiation‘s deadline is reached, the host of laws which seek to alter the nature of Basic Laws and allow the government to easily pass semi-constitutional laws will be passed as a single package of legislation, sources with knowledge of the emerging deal said.
Moreover, while decisions by the full cabinet would have immunity from being overturned because the court deemed them unreasonable, decisions by individual ministers would not enjoy such immunity.
Opposition leaders said during the talks that they viewed this as a sensible compromise.
Note how important➡️
it is for them to have peace and quiet so they can work on passing the budget.
What would Netanyahu and Levin do without the peace and quiet afforded to them by the fake ‚dialogue‘ at the President‘s residence that Gantz and Lapid are providing them with?
Preferred PM
?Netanyahu [Likud]: 47% (+5)
?Gantz [NUP]: 35% (-3)
?Lapid [YA]: 17% (+3)
?Gantz: 46% (-2)
?Netanyahu: 44% (+2)
?Netanyahu: 47% (+3)
?Lapid: 36% (+4)
Simcha Rothman, the chairman of the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, said that if no agreement is reached with the opposition, some of the judicial overhaul legislation would be passed by the Knesset during its current session