Ministers threaten to quit over Gaza truce plan
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threaten to dissolve the government
Daily TribuneNational Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threaten to dissolve the government
(FILE) srael’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir
[OHAD ZWIGENBERG/POOL/AFP via Getty Images]
JERUSALEM (AFP) — Two far-right Israeli ministers threatened on Saturday to quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyhau’s government if he goes ahead with a hostage release deal outlined by United States President Joe Biden.
Biden said on Friday that Israel had offered a new roadmap towards a full ceasefire including the release of hostages held by Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.
But Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said they would quit his government if the deal went ahead.
Ben Gvir said his party would “dissolve the government” if the deal went through and slammed the proposal as “a victory for terrorism and a security risk to the State of Israel.”
“Agreeing to such a deal is not total victory — but total defeat,” he said.
Smotrich said he would “not be part of a government that will agree to the proposed outline.”
“We demand the continuation of the war until Hamas is destroyed and all hostages return,” Smotrich said on X, adding that he opposes the return of displaced Gazans to the territory’s north and the “wholesale release of terrorists.”
Earlier on Saturday, Netanyahu insisted that the destruction of Hamas was part of the Israeli plan laid out by Biden.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid vowed to offer Netanyahu “our safety net for a hostage deal if Ben Gvir and Smotrich leave the government.”
Without Ben Gvir’s and Smotrich’s parties, Netanyahu’s coalition could lose its majority in parliament.
