The official said Netanyahu “fears National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich more than he fears the families of the hostages.”
Netanyahu is facing counter-pressure from the two far-right ministers on the one hand, and from the families of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip on the other.
Ben-Gvir and Smotrich threatened to withdraw from the government if Netanyahu struck a deal with Hamas to stop the Gaza war, effectively bringing down the government.
In return, the hostages’ families are pressing for a long-awaited deal to get the hostages out of the Gaza Strip in exchange for a halt to the war and the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
According to senior Israeli officials close to Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister is concerned about the possibility of an increase in the pace and momentum of the ongoing protests in major cities, which means increasing public pressure on him to conclude the faltering agreement.
“Netanyahu fears a repeat of the night of Galant,” one official told Haaretz, referring to a turning point in the protests against judicial reforms in March last year, when tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets following Netanyahu’s dismissal of Defense Minister Yoav Galant, who had warned him of the security risks of the move.
It is noteworthy that Galant strongly supports an agreement on Gaza, and stressed that “we must return the hostages who are still being held by Hamas.”
“In this situation, it will be clear that continuing in the same manner is impossible,” the official added.
On the other hand, it does not seem that Netanyahu has decided to change his policy regarding the Israeli presence in the Philadelphi Corridor, on the Gaza Strip’s border with Egypt.
According to diplomatic sources, Netanyahu is monitoring the pulse of the Israeli street in the coming days to assess developments, and will try to avoid changing his position. A source close to him said: “He will wait for the right time as much as he can.”
On Monday, Netanyahu renewed his rejection of calls to soften his position on keeping Israeli forces in the Philadelphi corridor in the southern Gaza Strip, to allow for a ceasefire agreement.
“It is necessary for Israel to control the axis,” he said, which he considered a “major lifeline” for Hamas.
This sticking point remains an obstacle in negotiations aimed at reaching an agreement to stop the fighting in Gaza and release the hostages held by the movement.
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