Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized plans announced Sunday by his military for an 11th-hour halt to fighting along a main road into the Gaza Strip to facilitate the delivery of aid to bombarded areas.
Reuters reported that the Israeli army announced a daily pause in fighting between the Kerem Shalom checkpoint and Salah al-Din road, as well as to the north, from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time.
“After the prime minister heard reports of the 11-hour humanitarian ceasefire in the morning, he went to his military chief and made it clear that this was unacceptable,” the Israeli official said.
Fighting in the designated areas will be suspended, but the army said it will continue routine operations in Rafah, the main focus of military operations in southern Gaza.
Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz resigns from Netanyahu’s emergency government
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticised the Israeli army’s plan to suspend fighting along the southern Gaza route to facilitate the delivery of aid to the Strip. (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo/File via Associated Press)
Netanyahu’s reaction highlighted growing political tensions over aid supplies to the Gaza Strip, where international groups have warned of a widening humanitarian crisis.
National Security Minister Itamar Bengvir, who heads one of the nationalist religious parties in Netanyahu’s ruling coalition, denounced the idea of a tactical ceasefire and said those who decided on it were “idiots” who should lose their jobs.
The dispute is just the latest spat between members of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s coalition and the military over how to proceed in Israel’s nine-month-old war with Hamas.
BBC anchor questions Israeli military warning Palestinians before hostage rescue operation: “It defeats the purpose”
Benny Gantz made the statement in Ramat Gan, Israel, on June 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Last Sunday, Israel’s War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz resigned from Prime Minister Netanyahu’s emergency government, saying that Netanyahu was “making complete victory impossible.”
In announcing his resignation on Sunday, Gantz said the government must prioritize the return of hostages held by Hamas on October 7 “over political survival.”
“In the months since the October disaster, the situation has changed at home and within the cabinet’s decision-making ranks. Prime Minister Netanyahu and his allies have turned unity into an empty call for solidarity, with no cloak or shield. Fateful strategic decisions are being met with hesitation and postponement due to political considerations,” Gantz said. “Prime Minister Netanyahu is preventing us from moving forward to real victory. That is why we leave the emergency government today with heavy hearts, but wholeheartedly.”
“Months after the October disaster, the situation at home and the cabinet’s decision-making capabilities have changed,” Gantz added. “Prime Minister Netanyahu and his allies have turned unity into an empty call with nowhere to hide. Political considerations are causing hesitation and postponement of fateful strategic decisions.”
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Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid called Gantz’s decision important and legitimate, and said it was time to replace Netanyahu’s government with one that would restore security, release hostages and restore Israel’s economic and international standing.
Fox News Digital’s Bradford Betts contributed to this report..
