Netanyahu said at the start of a regular cabinet meeting on Monday that he would meet with the security cabinet this week to discuss how to guide the IDF in moving forward in the Gaza Strip and achieving all of its war goals. He added, "We must continue to stand together and fight together to achieve all of our war goals." He did not specify in a statement when the security cabinet would meet.
On Sunday evening, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported that Netanyahu would hold a meeting on Tuesday with political and military officials to discuss "options" after he disrupted indirect negotiations with Hamas regarding a prisoner exchange and an end to Tel Aviv's genocide in the Gaza Strip.
The authority added that Netanyahu "will hold a meeting with military and political leaders (it did not identify them) to discuss the future of military operations in Gaza and options for dealing with the prisoners' file in light of the faltering negotiations with Hamas (it did not identify them)."
Regarding the meeting date, the committee said: "The discussion will not be held until Tuesday, in light of the disagreement over the various combat options." It explained that "no plan for a comprehensive agreement (with Hamas) has been put forward, despite the multiple statements." It quoted unnamed sources involved in the negotiations as saying: "We are stuck at a dead end, and the statements about a comprehensive agreement do not match up; they are the same thing and its opposite."
On Sunday, Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir warned that "any large-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip could endanger the lives of Israeli prisoners," according to Channel 13.
The channel added that this warning comes at a time when the government is moving to expand operations in the Gaza Strip after negotiations with Hamas faltered. Security sources were quoted as saying that Zamir informed those close to him that he "will not allow military operations in Gaza that could endanger the lives of prisoners."
New attack
In the same context, Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Monday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is paving the way for a new military operation in the Gaza Strip by allowing the entry of humanitarian aid. The newspaper said that Operation Gideon Wagons failed and did not achieve any of its goals, whether returning the prisoners and hostages or eliminating Hamas.
Since May 17, the Israeli occupation army has been carrying out a ground offensive, dubbed "Operation Gideon," which involves the mass displacement of Palestinians from combat zones, including northern Gaza, to the southern part of the Strip. The army will remain in any areas it occupies.
The newspaper continued: "Almost four months after the Gideon vehicles were launched, and with tens of thousands of reserve soldiers called up for the sixth time, Tel Aviv has not achieved its objectives from the operation." It added, "The Gideon vehicles can be considered finished."
" Government of extremists"
In a related development, former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon called on Monday for the removal of the "extremist religious government" headed by Benjamin Netanyahu.
Ya'alon (who served from 2013 to 2016) wrote on the X platform that "liberating the abductees (Israeli prisoners) through a decisive military victory, as described by the highest-ranking official responsible for the October 7 failure (meaning Netanyahu), means abandoning them and leaving them to their fate, and sacrificing dozens of soldiers for the sake of the continued rule of the coalition."
Criticizing Netanyahu, Ya'alon continued: "His concern over the prisoners' situation, as per the video clip released by Hamas, did not prompt him to convene a cabinet meeting yesterday or tomorrow, with the aim of gaining more time in office."
Ya'alon added, "He (Netanyahu) who deceived the people of Israel with an absolute victory through a military operation alone, without a complementary political step, continues to mislead the people into clinging to power," calling for the removal of "the government of religious extremists, draft evaders, and corrupt individuals as soon as possible, before disaster strikes."
"Eternal War"
Criticizing Netanyahu, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said on Monday that "the political leadership (the government) is dragging us into an eternal war in Gaza without returning the kidnapped soldiers."
"We were right to wage this war, but it has become pointless," Lapid said, adding that it crushes our international efforts and does not bring back the kidnapped soldiers. He also warned that Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir want to reoccupy the Gaza Strip.
Last week, Israel withdrew from indirect negotiations with Hamas in Doha due to Tel Aviv's intransigence on the withdrawal from Gaza, ending the war, Palestinian prisoners, and the mechanism for distributing humanitarian aid.
Fifty-two percent of Israelis hold their government fully or partially responsible for the failure to reach a prisoner exchange and ceasefire agreement with Hamas, according to the results of a poll published Sunday by the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies.
Hamas has repeatedly declared its willingness to release Israeli prisoners "in bulk" in exchange for an end to the war of extermination, the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army from Gaza, and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
The opposition and prisoners' families assert that Netanyahu is seeking partial deals that would allow the war to continue while ensuring his continued rule. He fears the collapse of his government if the most extreme faction, which refuses to end the war, withdraws.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel, with US support, has been waging a war of genocide in Gaza, including killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and orders from the International Court of Justice to halt it.
The genocide left more than 210,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 9,000 missing. Hundreds of thousands were displaced, and famine claimed the lives of many, including dozens of children.
