Netanyahu’s War Cabinet Explodes: Army Attacked, Ministers Leave Session

By Staff, Agencies

In a new show of rift inside the “Israeli” cabinet that gathered overnight on Friday to discuss the future of the Gaza Strip after the war against Hamas ends, the meeting was reportedly cut off after Knesset members clashed with the military establishment over investigation of the mistakes that led to October 7.

Miri Regev, Minister of Transport and Road Safety, pointed out that the decision over the probe had been made without Knesset members knowledge and argued that the army should be fully focused on the combat in the moment.

The question of the post-war Gaza uncovered the deep ideological divide within the coalition as the right-wing ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and so-called “National” Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, have promoted the idea of Gazans' permanent displacement and return of “Israeli” settlements into the Strip.

The investigation is said to include former War Minister Shaul Mofaz. The decision angered the far-right politicians due to his involvement in the disengagement from Gaza back in 2005.

Dismissing the criticism toward the army’s probe, Benny Gantz, a former Chief of Staff and War Minister, reportedly responded: “This is a professional investigation, what does it have to do with the disengagement [from the Gaza Strip in 2005]?”

“The chief of staff is ‘f***ing’ investigating into what happened now to serve the goals of the war and our ability to prepare for a conflict in the north. This is not a ‘national’ investigation.”

 An unnamed minister told Hebrew media outlet KAN that “it was a despicable discussion that exploded. They attacked the army. Some senior members of the ‘defense’ establishment left in the middle.”

“It's a shame and disgrace what happened there. You can criticize the army, but they attacked the chief of staff personally and endlessly. You have to think about whether this forum is worthy of making decisions at the level of our security policy,” KAN cited another minister.

They added: “I don't want to think what will happen when our soldiers in the field hear about what happened there and how they attacked their chief of staff.”

As a result of the heated exchange, “Israel's” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut off the meeting saying it would continue on another occasion.