Defense Minister Yoav Galant said today (Friday) that there are four bad alternatives regarding the future in the Gaza Strip. According to Gallant, the worst option is Hamas rule, followed by Israel’s military rule “which will cost us the lives of our soldiers and usurp military resources in the face of readiness for the North and the IDF”.
According to Gallant, the next stage will be “chaos that will lead to the investment of many resources in front of the international community and unnecessary interference in Gaza.” According to Galant, the least worst option is the rule of another body that will be a local body, but since he is not Hamas and he comes from Gaza – it means that once in a while he will look at what they say in Ramallah.
Yahya Sinwar Photo: AP
Ministers Yariv Levin and Miri attacked Galant for the proposals: “This is not acceptable to us, you are actually bringing back the Palestinian Authority,” the Cabinet said, and the Defense Minister replied: “Anyone who says they are not developing another alternative, chooses one of the three options which is not a local entity. Who The ones paying the price today for not making the decision are the IDF soldiers. The most senior officers say in discussions to the political level that the forces raid a certain neighborhood, go out, at this time instead of bringing in a local element, Hamas is re-establishing itself – that way we won’t collapse the organization.”
Senior officials on the negotiations for the deal: there is no progress, Israel is preparing for all possibilities, including the expansion of fighting
At the same time as Galant’s proposal for alternatives in the Gaza Strip, senior Israeli officials addressed the issue of the abductees and claimed: “Hamas exaggerated every possible parameter in its answer. There is no progress other than the mere submission of the answer. Hamas makes it very difficult for a meeting to make decisions and for real negotiations. Israel is preparing for all possibilities, including the expansion of combat.”
The head of the Mossad in Barnea will lead the delegation to Qatar Photo: Avshalom Sashoni, Flash 90
The two cabinets met and it is estimated that the delegation to Qatar will leave on Sunday. At the same time, a limited discussion is expected to decide on the lines of the delegation’s mandate. The head of the Mossad will lead the delegation, and Hamas representatives will be there when the negotiations take place in front of the mediators.
Even before the cabinet meeting, the war cabinet convened, at the end of which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had approved the plans for action in Rafah, and in addition the IDF was preparing to evacuate the population. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken responded: “We need to see a clear plan.”
Regarding the negotiations for the release of the abductees, the Prime Minister’s Office emphasized at the end of the War Cabinet meeting that Hamas’s demands are “still unfounded”, but we were informed that an Israeli delegation would go to Qatar after the cabinet discussion. Al Jazeera commented on the Hamas proposal and claimed that the agreement would include three stages – and each of them would last 42 days.
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