Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz agreed this Wednesday to form an emergency government of national unity and a war cabinet, according to an official joint statement.
Gantz, a former defense minister and chief of staff of the armed forces, released what he said was a joint statement with Netanyahu, in which he assured that the two would form a “war management cabinet” with five members.
In addition to Netanyahu and Gantz, the cabinet will also include current Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and two other senior officials who will serve as “observers.”
Under the agreement, as long as fighting continues, the government will not pass legislation or decisions unrelated to the war.
It remains unclear what role Netanyahu’s current governing partners, a group of far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties, will play.
Another Israeli opposition leader, Yair Lapid, was invited to join the new government. However, she has not yet responded to the proposal.
The agreement, which comes four days after the launch of a major offensive by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, will be in force during the war period, which was declared by Netanyahu on Saturday and reached during a meeting between Netanyahu and the president of the Palestinian Authority . Israeli National Unity Party, Benny Gantz.
In the isolated Gaza Strip, ruled by Hamas, Palestinians have struggled to find safety in recent days as Israeli bombardments destroyed entire neighborhoods and the area’s only power plant ran out of fuel.
The unusual agreement brings together a measure of unity after years of bitterly divided politics, at a time when it is increasingly likely that the military will launch a ground offensive in Gaza.
The Israeli government is under intense public pressure to expel Hamas after militias from the Islamist movement stormed the border on Saturday and shot dead hundreds of Israelis in their homes, on the streets and at an open-air music festival.
Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2006, launched a surprise attack on Israeli territory on Saturday, dubbed Operation ‘Al-Aqsa Storm’, with the launch of thousands of rockets and the incursion of armed militiamen on the ground and at sea. and air.
In response to the surprise attack, Israel aerially bombed several facilities in Gaza belonging to the movement, which has been classified as terrorist by the European Union (EU), the United States and Israel, in an operation dubbed “Iron Swords”.
Israel declared all-out war and vowed to punish Hamas like never before, with Netanyahu declaring he was “at war” with the Palestinian group.
The conflict has left more than 1,200 dead on the Israeli side and 1,055 in Gaza since Saturday, according to data updated today by both sides.
Source: DN
